The Z Shinobi
by Dii10star
Summary: What if Naruto met Goku, and traveled the world with him? What if the greatest evils of both worlds teamed up? Follow this fun, growing story as the two boys get into double the trouble!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Forest Encouter

"Man... Cathy, Cathy, you sure can make me happy." Jiraiya stumbled down the crowded streets of Konoha, leaving the home of one of his ... "research partners." His stench of whiskey and ladies perfume (among other things) would cause an Inuzuka to tuck tail and run. He ignored all of the looks he was given, considering it was the middle of the day.

Jiraiya let out a huge yawn. He then cleaned his ear with his pinky finger. "Man where am I going to crash tonight..." His face brightened up. "Oh yeah, Tsunade's in town! I heard she has a room... Hehehe..." He rubbed his hands together as he made a very disturbing look.

"Crap..." he face palmed. He just realized that he wasn't clean. She would punch him back to the day the Nine-Tales attacked.

Jiraiya's face drooped. He let loose a long sigh as he silently prayed. He missed his student. "Minato... Kushina..." he mumbled. He looked towards the Hokage Monument. "I wonder how my god kids doing..."

Jiraiya suddenly was struck by pain. He grimaced as he fell to one knee. "Man, I told my shadow clones not to disperse when I'm dru-" Jiraiya's face tensed. He quickly created two clones and they each ran in different directions.

"What the hell is the Akatsuki doing here?" He wondered aloud as he ran in the direction of them.

XxxoxxX

The Third Hokage sat slowly puffing on his pipe. He was currently looking at his new group of rookies files. They were pretty good, and they were currently entering stage two of the chunnin exams.

Shikamaru was a Nara. Even though his test scores were average, the Hokage knew it was a front. His numbers where... 'too' average. He did exactly what was needed to pass, nothing less nothing more. His friends teammates Choji and Ino weren't that spectacular, but he was sure that when they got their chemistry together, they would be great. Not to mention the fact that they were led by his son Asuma. He could see greatness in their future.

Then there was Team Kurenai. The Hyuuga heiress Hinata was a member. Although she was shy, she had taijutsu skills that exceeded some chunin. If she wasn't so down on herself, he was sure that she would become great. The Inuzuka kid Kiba was aggressive. The Hokage believed that that would benefit Hinata and hopefully rub off onto her. Shino Aburame was also pretty good, he had potential as well. He was more than positive that Kurenai would make them all great Shinobi.

Team 7 was ... odd to say the least. They had the rookie of the year Sasuke Uchiha, with a newly awakened Sharingan in tow. Hiruzen could see great power in him. He also saw great hatred. He silently wished that the boy didn't become consume by it.

Then there was Sakura. There wasn't anything to special about her, except her book smarts. She was ineffective in battle, or so he was told. And finally was the unofficial grandchild of his Naruto.

Naruto was a mystery. He never knew much about Naruto's power, but he always saw potential. He was amazed each time Kakashi briefed him with a report. Naruto seemed to improve quickly, and wasn't too many steps behind Sasuke now.

Hiruzen chucked as he stroked his beard. He was sure that the Will of Fire burned brightly in each of them. This was the best class in a while. He was sure that he would be able to retire happily soon.

Hiruzen suddenly tensed. He felt like something was off. He looked out of his office window and saw his student Jiraiya sprinting at him, causing him to spring out of his seat.

"What's the matter Jiraiya?" he questioned with urgency in his voice.

"The Akatsuki, they're here!" Jiraiya said swiftly.

The third gritted his teeth together. "Naruto..." He growled as he swiftly put on his battle suit.

"I can handle it. I'm just warning you, just in case something bad happens." Jiraiya dispersed in a puff of smoke.

Hiruzen sat back in his chair. He cupped his hands together and rested his head on it. He knew Jiraiya could easily handle it, he just was concerned for the child's safety. He sighed and put his pipe in his mouth and lit it with a small flame Jutsu.

"Naruto... Don't die."

XxxoxxX

Sakura sat weeping on the ground, holding onto her dear Sasuke. Both of her teammates were currently unable to fight. Sasuke occasionally groaned in pain, while Naruto just lay there. She rocked Sasuke back and forth.

"Give me the boy." Sakura flinched as she heard the voice. It sounded cold... colder than Sasuke's. She slowly turned around and looked at the source.

"Sa... Sasuke" she yelled looking from the boy in her hands to the man standing in front of her. He closely resembled Sasuke, with more defined cheekbones. He stood with his eyes held shut, his face showing no emotion. The man wore a black cloak with red clouds. His left arm was rest on the unbuttoned portion of the cloak, which was midway.

"No." was the simple answer she was given. The man stepped towards her. He glared as he got a good look at the child in her arms. "Little brother, you still don't hate enough."

"Little brother..." Sakura whispered in thought. Her eyes shot wide as she realized whom she was currently seeing. "Y-y-your..." Sakura gripped Sasuke even tighter. She pulled his face into her chest. Sasuke grimaced and his breathing quickened. Beads of sweat fell down his face as he held his eyes shut in pain. .

"I'm not here for your beloved Sasuke." The man walked past Sakura.

Sakura continued staring straight in fear. Tears fell down her face as his sandals slowly clicked on the forest floor. She whipped around as she heard him stop. He was standing under the limp body of Naruto pinned to the tree

"Naruto..." Sakura whispered. Her body shook as tears streamed down her face. She wanted to help him, but what could she do? He killed all of the Uchiha alone!

He looked up at Naruto. His bright orange clothing was a disgrace to all ninja. 'He has whiskers? It seems the Fox has merged with his DNA.' He stared at the boy for a few seconds. He reached forward to grab him. When his hand was an inch away, he froze. Sakura looked at him confused.

"Choji, it won't last long. Get Naruto!" Sakura heard from the woods. She suddenly saw a large sphere burst through the trees and shoot at the man. When he struck him, he burst into a flock of crows. The ball stopped rolling and Sakura saw the fat boy from her class.

"Ch-Choji!" Sakura yelled in relief. She wiped her tears with her left hand while her right still cradled the Uchiha.

"Damn. We could've died just now." The lazy figure of Shikamaru walked out of the woods, accompanied by Ino.

"But we didn't. He ran off scared!" Ino yelled.

"Scared?" The group of four all looked in the direction of the voice and froze. Shikamaru gritted his teeth, while Ino and Choji looked terrified.

"Don't look in his eyes!" Shikamaru yelled. 'What a drag... We die before we even become Chunin.'

"Itachi Uchiha!" The group looked behind them. They saw an old man with long white hair. He stood in front of Naruto, smiling at the ninja. The name caused Sasuke's eyes to jerk open. "It's your unlucky day!"

"Itachi!" All eyes fell on Sasuka as he struggled to his feet. He held one arm on his neck while he slowly took a step towards Itachi. Sasuke glared at the man with his Sharingan twirling madly.

Itachi closed his eyes. "You still are too weak, Sasuke. Hate me." Itachi's eye opened and his Sharingan stared back into Sasuke's.

Sasuke fell to the ground in pain. He let loose a blood curdling scream, causing all wildlife to run in opposite directions.

Jiraiya sprung to life. He quickly jumped forwards with a Rasengan in hand and thrust it at Itachi. The ninja jumped backwards and the Jutsu crashed into the ground causing a massive crater. "It's not time for me to die just yet." Itachi said as he turned to walk away.

"How could you kill your own people?" Sakura asked as she looked at Sasuke thrashing on the ground. "Why?"

Itachi stopped walking. Jiraiya noticed him tense up a bit. The ninja simply turned into crows that flew away.

XxxoxxX

"It's no longer safe here for him." Jiraiya said sternly. Jiraiya was sat in the Hokages office.

"They can find him anywhere they want." Hiruzen took a long pull from his pipe. He was so stressed out, no wonder there was so much wrinkles. "And I feel much more comfortable if I could watch him myself."

"They came straight in the village alone undetected. Imagine if I wasn't here? Naruto and maybe even Sasuke would've been dead." Hiruzen hung his head. He knew he was right.

"Then maybe you can stay here? Protect your god child." he added with a soft voice. Jiraiya in the village would make everyone feel more safe.

Jiraiya shook his head. "I have to worry about the entire elemental countries, I can't just stay here." The two men were silent for a few seconds. Jiraiya suddenly had an idea. "What if..." he trailed off.

"Go on." Hiruzen looked at him interested. He paused from his pipe.

"I mean maybe he can train under my previous sensei..." Jiraiya said with a slight smile on his face while rubbing his chin.

Hiruzen looked at him confused. "I'm the Hokage, are you mad?" He asked a bit irritated. "Where would I find time to train him? There's just too much paperwork."

Jiraiya shook his head. "Not you. I'm talking about... the turtle hermit."

Hiruzen stared at Jiraiya like he was from a different world. "The Turtle Hermit? Isn't that a myth?"

"It's not. I have been training with him on and off since I was a child." Jiraiya's smile widened. "He's powerful... maybe even more so than you, no offense."

The Hokage glared at the smiling Jiraiya. "And what about him becoming a chunin?" he asked dangerously.

The sannin raised his hands protectively. "I promise that he'll return for it eventually! Isn't his life more important than his rank?" he pleaded nervously.

Hiruzen slowly stood and walked to his window. He calmed his breathing as he stared. "Are you sure he'll take him in as a student? The legends say that he rarely takes in students." The Hokage quietly spoke.

Jiraiya's face twisted into a sick smile. "I have my ways..." He said as he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Hiruzen sighed. Of course he would send a shadow clone to do the talking. He must've expected a hostile rejection.

"Jiraiya... I hope you know what you're doing."

XxxoxxX

Ok guys, I really have big ideas for this story. I know it's starting off kind of slow, but bear with me. I'm also typing this on an iPhone... It sucks:(. Anyway, read and review!


	2. Sad Departure

Sad departure Jiraiya slowly weaved his way through the crowded streets of Konoha. He was amazed how many came this year to watch the exam, nearly double than the previous year. Then again, everyone wanted to see how much the Uchiha kid grew. He was currently going to meet the blonde ninja named Naruto. He was impressed as he watched the kid beat the young Inuzuka. He wasn't very skilled, but he really knew how to think on his feet.

Jiraiya was honestly impressed by most of the Konoha genin. Shikamaru would be a great general one day, Hell, he was smarter than his dad was at that age. Sasuke was on a whole different level. Even compared to other Uchiha he was quite talented at that age. Both Hyuuga were strong fighters, but the princess needed the killer edge that her male counterpart contained.

Jiraiya hung his head low when thinking about the young student of Guy. He fought hard, but he just couldn't beat the sand ninja. Jiraiya was more than sure that he would have made quick work of any other genin. He was defeated mercilessly and Jiraiya could sense that some of his bones were crushed. The sand genin had an evil look in his eyes... and he looked angry that the fight was stopped. He'd have to keep his eyes on the young Jinchuuriki.

Jiraiya's train of thought was interrupted as he heard some ladies giggling. He looked up and saw that he was near the hot baths. His eyes were filled with lust as a creepy smiled filled his face. "Research is calling my name!"

Jiraiya nimbly jumped towards the bathhouse. He peeked around and made sure that no one was looking at him. He turned around and started peeking in through a hole he put in it a couple months ago. The Sannin giggled and drooled as he peeked.

"What are you doing, pervert!"

The voice caused Jiraiya to jump. Jiraiya turned in embarrassment slowly. "Just a little research..." Jiraiya opened his eyes and saw a mop of blonde in front of him. The orange outfit that he wore clearly gave off who the kid was.

"Research my butt, you were peeking in on th- mmmph!" Jiraiya shot his hand forward and covered Naruto's mouth as people started looking at the duo. Naruto spit on his hand, causing the Sannin to quickly move it. "Do that again and I'll kick your ass!"

"Please, you couldn't land a single punch on me," the Sannin muttered.

The blond ninja growled at the remark. "I could too!" he argued.

Jiraiya pointed at Naruto with a scowl on his face. "Could not!" he yelled immaturely.

Naruto mimicked his stance and facial expression. "Could too!"

"Could not!"

"Could too!"

"Could-" Jiraiya hung his head in shame. Why was he arguing with a twelve year old? He stood up and stretched. He then folded his arms. Jiraiya flashed a toothy smile as he stared at the kid. "Prove it."

Naruto growled at the old geezer. He smirked and lowered himself. "I hope your fast, old man!" Naruto jumped at Jiraiya. When he was inches from landing his attack, the ninja moved to the left causing the boy to crash to the ground.

Jiraiya smirked. He turned to the boy. "Told ya," he joked with his arms still folded.

Naruto jumped up. "That was practice," he said whilst blushing. "Now I got you!" He ran at the man, but he yawned and kindly jumped over Naruto. Naruto swung too hard and lost his balance. He fell forward, and Jiraiya landed in front of him. He knelt towards him until there nose were nearly touching.

"Wanna get strong like me?" Jiraiya whispered in his ear cooly. He heard about Naruto's obsession with cool, strong Shinobi and... Hell he definitely fit the description. Not to mention he was a total magnet for the ladies. And a writer of a best selling series. Not to mention the fact that he was a sage. That would make him much too cool. But then again, if you have the bosoms, don't hide them-

"Stop looking at me with that creepy face!" Jiraiya's train of thought was interrupted by the sudden outburst. He opened his eyes... when did they close? He saw Naruto stood pointing at him. His face looked angry. His features softened slightly and a fire shone in his eyes. "But will you really teach me?"

Jiraiya approached the kid and ruffled his hair. "Of course! I'll make you the strongest Shinobi that ever existed!"

Naruto was filled with excitement. He grinned and looked up at the old figure. Jiraiya stared into the blue eyes of the young Shinobi. Looking into his eyes filled Jiraiya with a mix of emotions, ranging from sad to hurt. He also felt regret. A lot of regret.

"When do we start? Right now?" Naruto excitedly stared at Jiraiya with a wide grin on his face.

Jiraiya flicked his hand at the boy. "No, kid we leave in an hour. Go pack a light bag, only with the necessities." Jiraiya hopped on the roof of a building as he spoke. "Go speak to your friends. You won't be returning until it's time for the exam. While I, have some research to do." Jiraiya hopped away from Naruto giggling and smiling.

"Man... he is soooo cool!"Naruto said happily. " I have to tell Sakura and Sasuke!" With that, Naruto created a clone. "You, go pack!" he told him as he ran in the opposite direction. XxxoxxX

Sakura and Ino sat on the edge of team seven's usual training field. They were watching Sasuke train. He was currently throwing kunai at targets spread across the field and hitting every mark. His Sharingan blazed wildly as he practiced.

Sakura sighed. All Sasuke ever did was train now. Getting beat so easily during the exams put a toll on his ego.

"What's wrong Forehead?" Ino shoved Sakura's arm playfully. After their match in the exams, they rekindled their childhood friendship.

"It's just," Sakura sighed again, " He's always in the zone. He doesn't speak to me anymore or nothing. All he does is train.

"Ino glanced at him with a smirk. "I don't know about you, but I could do this all day." As if on cue, Sasuke stopped training and removed his shirt, causing both girls to shriek. Sasuke glared at the girls, but with his Sharingan and six pack abs was just too much for the duo. Both girls fell to the ground with hearts on their eyes.

Sasuke suddenly looked up from the girls. "What's the Dobe doing headed here?"Sasuke asked himself. He thought that Naruto was training with some Sensei he never heard of.

"Hey guys!" Naruto ran towards his companions waving. Sakura and Ino woke from their daze as they heard the loud boy.

"Hey Naruto!" Ino yelled as she waved. She actually liked the kid. He was nice, and their weren't much blondes that she knew so she felt he was like family.

"What do you want?" Sasuke spit at Naruto.

Naruto continued grinning. He hopped from foot to foot, looking very excited. "I have a new Sensei!" He yelled after trying to hold it in.

"Duh, I saw you with Ebisu-Sensei earlier," Sakura said in an annoyed tone.

Naruto rapidly shook his head. "Naw, he was weak. My new Sensei is way cooler." Naruto beamed widely, causing Ino to blush at his cute expression.

"Who is it?" Ino asked. Sasuke walked to were the girls were sitting and grabbed a water bottle. Although Sasuke didn't admit it, he wanted to hear as well. Both girls nearly had heart attacks as his sweat dripped. Kami must have blessed them as his sweat touched each girl on the cheek. They both fainted to the ground whilst sighing his name.

Naruto snickered for a few seconds, his eyes held shut. "His name is Jiraiya!"

Ino's face went from a smile to a look of shock. Sakura looked at him with disbelief, and Sasuke gritted his teeth. "Jiraiya the Sannin?" The two girls yelled as they sprung off the ground. Naruto nodded with his big goofy smile. "That is soo cool Naruto!" Ino yelled. "Can you get his autograph for me? Tell him to come by the shop sometime!" Naruto nodded. "I promise." He then turned to Sakura.

"I won't be back in a month." Naruto blushed slightly and pushed his fingers together, sort of like a certain Hyuuga that they knew. "Would you mind going on a date with me?"

Sakura looked at the boy with a disgusted frown plastered on her face. "I would never go on a date with you Naruto. I have my Sasuke." She turned away from Naruto and eyed 'her' Sasuke.

Naruto drooped for a few seconds. He suddenly straightened up. Naruto walked up to the raven haired genin. Sasuke watched each step that he made, getting more irritated with each click of his sandals.

When Naruto was a few feet away from him, he removed his shirt. Although Naruto wasn't skinny, he was not nearly as defined as Sasuke. His four pack was overshadowed by Sasuke's six abs. His arms were slimmer as well. S

asuke smirked at the kid. "Your finally coming out of the closet, huh?" he teased. The two girls giggled at the remark, causing Naruto to grow red in the face.

Naruto glared and pointed at Sasuke, stomping his left foot. "Shut it, cry baby!" Sasuke tensed as the boy called him that. Naruto flexed his right biced and grabbed it. "I'm just seeing how evenly matched we are. I promise that when I come, I'll be stronger than you!" Naruto flexed his muscles to prove a point.

Sasuke growled. "You want to see how far behind you are, huh?" Sasuke leaned back, to where his hair shadow was covering his eyes. He smiled wide, looking more like a wolf than a boy. " Come get your ass kicked." Sasuke slowly demanded.

Sasuke's Sharingan spun wildly as he taunted his rival. Naruto smirked at Sasuke. "You're on!" he said as he walked to the center of the training field. Sasuke's anger rose with each step. Once there, Naruto turned and faced Sasuke. He fell into a crouched, clumsy stance."You're going down!"

Naruto widened his eyes as his rival suddenly appeared in front of him. He felt his ramen from two days ago (his last meal now that he thought about it) turn as Sasuke punched him in the stomach. His jaw was clenched shut as Sasuke kicked him in the face. Before Naruto could prepare himself, Sasuke ran and grabbed him by his neck.

As Naruto stared into his eyes, he could only see death. Naruto clawed at Sasuke to no avail, as the boy seemed to not feel it. Sasuke reached back and punched Naruto in his face. He did it again and again, ruthlessly beating the kid and causing him to shriek in pain.

"S-Sasuke stop!" Sakura yelled as she saw her teammate brutally beating her other. She wanted to stop them, but she could see in Sasuke's eyes that he wasn't focused on anything but Naruto. Purple lightning phased around the duo lightly. Ino covered her ears and ran away after hearing Naruto yell out for the umpteenth time.

"Do you understand now, Naruto?" Sasuke yelled as he shoved the ninja to the ground. "You will never be as strong as me!" He kicked Naruto in the side, causing him to slide on the grass. "I am an Uchiha! The strongest of all clans!" Sasuke gripped Naruto by the neck and lifted him into the air again. Sasuke cocked a fist back. He let loose a mighty roar in tune with the lightning as he swung back at Naruto.

Sasuke was shocked as his fist stopped moving. He looked to the left and saw Naruto was gripping his fist with his hand. Naruto's hand shook as he held Sasuke's fist in place. He and Sasuke glared at each other, one face full of sadness, the other full of hate.

"What the..." Sasuke looked into Naruto's eyes and froze. In place of the usual blue eyes, he saw a pair of feline eyes staring back at him. his eyes were filled of water, yet Sasuke felt as if he were the one in danger. The ferocity of the boys expression was enough to scare a seasoned Jonin. A light cloak of red slowly crept around his figure. After a minute of silence, Naruto finally spoke. "Why do you hate me so much?" Naruto asked in a low whisper.

Both Sasuke and Sakura flinched as they heard a darker, deadlier tone over his voice. His eyes were full of tears as he stared into the eyes of Sasuke. It was almost as if Sasuke was looking past him.

Sasuke watched amazed as he saw the wounds of Naruto slowly healing. The flesh sizzled slightly as they closed, leaving not even a scar. 'What the hell is he?' He silently wondered.

Sasuke slowly loosened his grip on Naruto. The blonde ninja fell to the ground with a thud. Naruto gripped onto the grass and his cloak dispersed as he gasped for air. Sasuke turned and swiftly walked away from Naruto, his eyes still spinning.

"Naruto..." Sakura whispered. She looked between Naruto and Sasuke. Tears fell down her face as she watched the scene unfold. "S-Sasuke!" Sakura then took off running behind the raven haired Shinobi.

This stung Naruto, he felt his heart tear apart. Naruto was left sitting alone in the middle of the training field, sobbing and coughing harder than ever. He was leaving and this is how his friends treat him? He cried and cried, not even realizing that his new Sensei sat in the tree and watched the scenario unfold. His heart was heavy as he sternly glared at his apprentice.

"Oh Naruto... Minato... I'm so sorry..."

XxxoxxX

Jiraya sat at the gates of Konoha. He was a few minutes early waiting for his new pupil. He watched a butterfly dance in the air as he waited. The purple and blue insect was a beautiful rare breed indeed. He couldn't remember their name, but he knew that they were very protective of their young. Their saliva contains a poisonous mixture that stuns insects. The saliva touching a human would only result in a slight sting, as well as a temporary scar. It is believed that an individual stung between the eyes amass a great power. Coincidentally, he and his two former teammates each were stung in the spot when he accidentally knocked a tree down while training, disturbing a frenzy of sleeping parents.

"So, you're training Naruto?"

Jiraiya turned towards the voice. He saw Kakashi Hatake looking at him with his hands in his pockets. Kakashi stared at the man with a lazy look.

"Yep. You should be happy, you never seemed to care about him anyways." Kakashi visually flinched. He looked to the ground as he thought about his Sensei.

"At least I was there for him." It was Jiraiya's turn to flinch. He also looked to the ground in thought of his favorite student.

Kakashi sighed. He turned away from Jiraiya. He leaned to the left foot and glanced slightly over his shoulder. "Orochimaru did something to his seal, his chakra isn't flowing right. I'm sure that you can fix it."

Jiraiya nodded. "Will do. I'll see you in a month, Kakashi."

Kakashi simply jumped away, preferring not to respond. Jiraiya sighed. Would Kakashi ever accept him? The cold shoulder was really getting annoying. "Damn Kakashi... Always gotta ruin the mood..." Jiraiya grumbled as he glared to the side at nothing. He patted up and down his outfit. "Him and his lazy ..." Jiraiya brightened as he felt what he was looking for. He smiled as he withdrew a small silver flask. He giggled as he clumsily unscrewed it. "But sake can always brighten it!"

Jiraiya paused as he saw Naruto approaching him with his travel pack on his back. He jumped, causing the flask to fly into the air. He panicked and tried to catch it, but it kept slipping. After a few seconds, he caught it and stuffed it in his pockets. "Heheh, sorry about that buddy."Jiraiya appologized nervously at his student. Naruto slowly trudged past him, as if Jiraiya wasn't there.

"Well that's rude..." Jiraiya noticed that the boy seemed to be in a trance. His eyes were red and puffy, his steps slow and steady. "The hell is his pro-" Jiraiya felt like slapping himself. He almost forgot about the encounter with Naruto's teammates.

Naruto stopped walking and slowly turned towards Jiraiya. "I'm ready when you are," he drawled out quietly.

Jiraiya sighed. He wasn't that good at cheering people up, unless it was a woman that needed to be taken care of. "I'm ready to go kid. Follow me." Jiraiya said as he took to the trees.

Naruto turned and looked at his hometown. He fixed his face into a determined expression. "You will acknowledge me..." He grumbled as he followed his teacher into the trees.

XxxoxxX

Man... It took me a looong time to update it seems. I'm working on two other Naruto stories and I'm getting my ass kicked. But I hope to keep my fans happy, so hopefully I'll update soon. Also, I'm going to jump forward a couple days. What happens during those days will be seen in flashbacks. Special thanks to gamelover41592 for correcting my error. You're the best!


	3. Fox vs Monkey!

I don't own Naruto or Dragonball

Monkey vs Fox!

"H-hey I got it!"

Naruto giggled as he flailed his arms for balance. He excitedly stared down towards his wobbly legs. The blonde shinobi was standing up to his ankle in a large body of water.

The Sannin decided that in order to help the boy get stronger, he would teach him water walking. Well, initially it was tree climbing but Kakashi beat him to it. Jiraiya was honestly amazed that he could even climb trees, considering the amount of chakra that was inside him even without the Kyuubi's help.

Jiraiya smiled brightly as he looked at his student. His wet jumpsuit was soaked, giving it a darker tint. He couldn't help but chuckle as the boys body vibrated with laughter."You got it my boy!" preteen. Naruto's fit of giggles continued as he flipped his wet hair out of his eyes. He lifted one foot off of the lake that he recently learned to stand on. He took a slow step forward, and slowly lowered it onto the surface. He quickly pulled back, causing him to lose balance and his arms to flail. "Aww crap!" he yelled as he rocked. "No no no no no!"

'_This is just great...'_ Jiraiya thought with a smile. He smirked as he watched the boy fall forward in the water, shouting obscenities. "Watch your mouth!" he yelled whilst laughing maniacally.

"You shut it, Pervy Sage!" Naruto yelled as he swam back to the shore. "I'm gonna be the best water walker ever!" He continued grumbling things which consisted of "dumb pervert" and "kick your ass to the old ninja that was booming with laughter. He finally stopped laughing and took a few seconds to catch his breath, ignoring the evil intent that the Jinchuuriki was sending his way.

Jiraiya crossed his arms across his chest and smiled at the boy. He shook his head as the boy shouted about being legendary and marrying some girl called Blossom... or was it Daisy..? Naruto was actually a very quick learner. He expected for the boy to be stupid, as his files said. He realized that the boy wasn't dumb, he just learned more from experience than a book, sorta like himself; not to mention his other blonde student. "Naruto, if you don't learn this, you can't meet the super strong super cool teacher!"

Naruto stood on the sand and looked back at the water. He continued staring at the large body of vile liquid that dared defy him, getting angrier with each passing second. A low growl escaped his throat as he gritted his teeth.

Jiraiya noticed Naruto's annoyance. The kid had little to no patience! With this attitude, it was highly unlikely that he would be able to learn sage mode... but hey, they'll reach that obstacle when it came. In the meantime he would have to teach him to properly walk on the water. He started walking toward his gnarling student. "Kid, your first problem is control-"

"The sea! The sea! We made it!" Jiraiya turned towards the familiar voice. He double took as he saw the sight before him. There stood a boy wearing an orange gi. His hair was sticking out in every direction, with a thick bang poking out the front. On his back was a pole which felt familiar... he just couldn't put a name to it. The kid was chubby, however if you looked closely you could see that he was pretty muscular. He also had a tail... that was really odd. The oddest part about him, however, was the fact that he carried a large turtle on his back.

Following closely behind was a blue haired girl on an odd object. It seemed to help her move without using her legs. _'At this age that could be convenient'_ he thought as he rubbed his sore back. Maybe the pretty lady will let him take it for a spin. A new character for his book slowly formed in his head. Ironically the character was blessed with hair that was a nice light blue hue.

Jiraiya was knocked out of his train of thought as he heard a splash into the water. He looked towards it and saw the turtle swimming away. Naruto's face twisted into a scowl as he glared at the scenario before him. Hell, he was surprised that the kid held his silence for this long.

Naruto visibly shook with anger. "Hey! You rude bastards are interrupting my training!" He stomped his chakra enhanced foot on the water, causing it to cascade into the air. This definitely caused all of the eyes to fall on him.

The Jinchuuriki smirked at the crowd. He shook the wet hair out of his face , causing Jiraiya to swiftly jump away with a look of disgust plastered on his face.

"Not cool man!" he yelled as he coughed. "It got in my mouth!"

The blue haired girl giggled at him. Naruto blushed as his blue eyes crossed hers of the same hue. He quickly turned away, turning the color of a tomato.

The raven haired boy looked towards Naruto. He held a blank expression on his face. He slowly walked up to the blonde genin. Naruto stared at the kid with confusion plastered on his face.

"Hey..." Everyone looked at the kid with awkward glances as he leaned into Naruto's face. Naruto leaned backwards, but the kid kept leaning forward until their noses were nearly touching.

Naruto growled as he leaned back. What was this kids problem? Sweat dripped from him, or maybe it was the water? Regardless, this was not the most comfortable position to be in.

After a long pause, the boy finally opened his mouth. "Are you a kitty?" the black haired boy asked.

Everyone got silent as there was a beat. Each face displayed a different emotion; one of shock, one of curiosity, one trying to hold in a giggle, and one of straight evil intent.

Jiraiya had the evil intent.

"A... a kitty?" Naruto asked. His eyes were held wide as he stared at the boy.

Jiraiya slowly twisted into a smile. From looking at this child, he could see that he was pretty strong. He also could sense the kids ki, and it was off the charts for his diminutive size.

He was going to provoke them. In the three days he knew Naruto, he was sure of one thing: it didn't take much to tick him off.

"Hey," Jiraiya giggled out, "he thinks your a kitty!" There was a visible tick on the blondes head.

"Well now that you mention it..." the girl tapped a finger on her chin, "he sure does resemble one." She blushed a deep crimson as she covered her mouth. "Those whiskers are cute though."

"Can I keep it Bulma? Pleeeeeeeeeeeaaaaase?" he asked with a pout in his lip as he stared at the girl they now knew was named Bulma.

Naruto shook visibly. His face turned an even darker shade of red, filled with both anger and embarrassment._ 'Did... did she just call me cute?' _he wondered as he ignored them arguing over keeping him.

In an instant the boy was knelt in front of Naruto. He reached forward and did the unexpected.

He patted Naruto's crotch.

Twice.

Naruto violently shook with anger. Steam flew from his person as he growled. The boy stood up and took a step back. "He's a boy kitty!" he yelled excitedly whilst jumping from foot to foot in a circle.

XxoxxX

Hiruzen was sat at his desk. He was currently glaring at his pile of work that just seemed to be growing. It was amazing how the Fourth Hokage could finish his work so swiftly, why hadn't he mastered this yet?

He decided to do it later after being unable to think of an answer. He leaned back and lit his pipe with a small fire Jutsu. The Hokage took three pulls and exhaled.

He chuckled. It's a good thing Naruto wasn't here. He would've instantly been yelled at for wasting his chakra. The boy was merely jealous that he had yet to learn a fire Jutsu.

The Hokage sighed as he exhaled. He missed the runt. He would love to hear his exuberant laugh, or even just hearing him yell at him.

"WHAAAAAAARRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAA!"

The Hokage jumped to his feet, knocking a lot of papers onto the floor. He looked in all directions and performed a Jutsu. He closed his eyes as he sent a wave of chakra through the city.

He relaxed as he realized that Naruto wasn't there. _'Must be finally going senile,'_ he chuckled. He exhaled and continued looking through the window. Maybe it was finally time to hand the reigns of Hokage to a younger individual.

In an instant he heard a small patter on the floor. He turned slightly to greet his grandson Konohamoru. The boy nearly tripped over his scarf as he stumbled into the office. The Hokage chuckled causing the boy to blush.

"Don't laugh at me Old Man!" The toddler yelled. His face turned determined. "Did you just hear my rival scream?" The Hokage flinched as he heard this. So he wasn't hearing things!

"Who could be strong enough to hurt him? He's way to strong!" The boys voice rose shakily as he yelled. Hiruzen could see tears threatening to fall from the boys eyes.

The old Hokage's mind filled with thoughts. Did they run into Orochimaru? Maybe the Akatsuki caught up to them? The more the old man thought, the more worried he became.

"Grandpa!" Hiruzen was knocked out of his thoughts as his name was yelled. "Send me to get him! I'll kick the bad guys butt with my ultimate Jutsu!"

The Hokage sighed. He walked towards the boy and put a hand on his head, being answered with a scowl. "He's just training, he'll be back soon."

Konohamaru growled. "He can't train without me! I have to go get stronger to beat him when he comes!" The boy dashed out of the office with a new resolve. 

Hiruzen sat back at his desk. His mind raced over the many possibilities that could have happened to the blonde shinobi. After a few seconds of thought, he figured that there could only be one way to solve this.

"Boar." A masked figure appeared kneeling before the fourth. "Bring me Kakashi."

XxxoxxX

Naruto panted heavily as he stared at the boy. The kid continued dancing (which was merely him jumping from foot to foot waving in the air). The loud sound of Jiraiya's laughter only managed to raise the boys anger. Naruto crossed his fingers into his most known jutsu.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" In a puff of smoke a dozen Naruto clones appeared. They all stared angrily at the black haired kid, who stared at them in amazement.

"Wow!" he yelled. "Now there's more kitties! Can you teach me how to do that?" he stared wide eyed at the clones in what seemed to be a pleading look. The clones all snarled at the small kid.

The blue haired girl looked nervously at the clones. She backed her vehicle up as they all glared at her companion. "Goku, I don't think they're here to be your friends..." she said quietly. Of course she knew that the boy could fight, but this was thirteen enemies! Even Jackie Chung would have problems.

"I'm not a kitty!" All of the Naruto's yelled as they charged Goku.

"Whoa!" Goku ducked as he dodged a punch. He blocked a follow up punch with his right arm, as well as a kick from another clone with his left foot. He pushed off of the clones and back flipped as he dodged kunai. Two more Naruto's growled as they charged the boy.

Goku smiled as he lowered himself into a stance. "Oh you want to fight? I'm very strong!"

Naruto was angered by the boys calm nature. He acted as if he would win this fight! "Shut up!" One of the clones came from the left and swung wildly, which was easily evaded by the boy. Goku swatted away another punch from a different clone. He ducked to dodge a kick, and sprung up off of his tail. While rising, he spun and laughed as he blocked numerous attacks from five Naruto's with his five limbs (tail included), each of them getting angrier by the second. After knocking aside another kick, the boy flipped onto the ground. A clone ran at Goku, aiming to harm the boy.

"My turn!" Goku yelled as he punched the clone in the chest. His eyes sprung open as he saw him burst into smoke. He looked from his hand and to the spot where the boy was just standing. "I didn't mean to kill it!" He said with fear in his voice. He looked towards Jiraiya. "I'm sorry sir, I didn't want to kill your-"

"Shut up!" Goku released a yell as he was kicked in the back of his head. He fell onto his face and slid forward a few meters.

"Goku!" the blue haired girl yelled wide eyed as the boy tumbled forward. She covered her mouth as the clones surrounded her partner.

"Take this!" four of the clones kicked the boy in the air. The real Naruto jumped above him and cocked his fist back. "My name is Naruto!" He yelled as he punched the boy to the ground. Goku fell with a thud, landing hard on his back.

Naruto breathed slow and deep as he stared at the boy. He couldn't help but smile, this was the first fight he ever won on his own. He hoped he hadn't kill the boy, he just wanted to send a message. He dispersed his clones. "One shinobi rule, never stop until you're opponent is finished!"

Jiraiya smiled at Naruto. Even though he knew the boy would be getting up in a second, it was still impressive. His student was in great need of taijutsu lessons, with the odds in his favor twelve to one, he still couldn't hit the boy.

"Ow!" Goku sat up and rubbed the back of his head, causing Naruto to flinch. "That really hurt! It's not nice to attack someone from behind!" He stood to his feet and bounced on his toes. The onlookers stared at him in disbelief as he started stretching. Jumping jacks and cherry pickers followed.

"Whew!" Goku bent his knees and bounced. He rose and lowered himself into his fighting stance. A smirk spread across his lips. "Now let's do this!"

Naruto growled. He lowered into a feral stance and ran at Goku. The boy ran back at Naruto in a much quicker fashion.

Naruto swung at the boy, but went over his head. Goku leaned up and punched him twice in the stomach, granting him a groan from the blonde. Goku quickly went on the offensive and sent a flurry of kicks and punches at the young Jinchuuriki. Naruto growled as he was assaulted, the pain was much more than he expected. He had to think of something fast!

Goku jumped away from Naruto. Naruto braced himself for another attack, but was surprised when he didn't get attacked. The boy was stood a few feet away from him with his arms firmly to the side. He looked at Naruto with a steeled expression.

"I don't wanna hurt you anymore." Goku said.

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow in amusement._ 'A strong fighter that shows mercy,_' he thought, _'that's not something you see everyday_.'

Naruto clenched his fists until his nails on both hands drew blood. His hair covered his eyes as he held his breath. He stuck a fist forward and stumped his foot.

"Don't act like you're better than me! I'm gonna be Hokage!"

Goku stared at Naruto curiously. He tilted his head to the right. "What's a Hokage? Is it some kind of fish?" Goku startled jumping excitedly and giggling. "If you become Hokage, I promise I won't eat you!" Goku stopped jumping and innocently put his finger on his chin "Umm... unless I'm really hungry."

"No it's not a freaking fish!" Naruto yelled whilst pointing at the boy. "It's the strongest ninja in the village!"

Goku smiled at him. "Really? My grandpa must be a Hokage. He was really strong!"

A large vein appeared on Naruto's head. "Who said this match was over?" A sly smirk crossed his face. "I haven't even used my strongest Jutsu!"

"Jutsu?" Goku asked curiously. "What's that?"

_'The gaki has an ultimate Jutsu?'_ thought the Sannin with a look of interest in his eye.

Naruto growled at the boy's stupidity. Was he born under a rock? Instead of answering, the blonde decided to show him. "Sexy Jutsu!"

In a burst of smoke, the beach was covered in well over one hundred clones- well clones wouldn't be the best way to put it. Surrounding the small boy were girls that favored the blonde. They each had matching whiskers, but their hair was in ponytails. Another striking feature was their nudity. They were completely naked, their private parts being barely covered by smoke.

"Whaaaaa!" Jiraiya was knocked back by a jet of blood shooting out of his nose. He lay on the ground unconscious.

"You pervert!" a blushing Bulma yelled as she saw the nude females surrounding her partner.

Goku looked at the girls and a bright smiled covered his face. "Now I have a lot of kitties!" he yelled, causing all of the girls to halt. He knelt low and did the unthinkable.

He patted one's crotch.

Twice.

All of the clones dispersed as Naruto let loose a scream that was easily louder than the first, considering it was with female vocal cords. He quickly reverted to a boy and fell to his knees. Tears welled at the corner of his eyes. The young genin had never felt so violated in his life.

Goku's face showed a look of despair. "Where did they go?" he asked himself as he looked around, even going as far to jumping in the water.

Naruto stared at the sand under him. His mind wandered from being sad to humiliated, not to mention that there was a pretty girl nearby. He wanted to just disappear like the Fourth Hokage was made famous for. He didn't even notice the girl walking up to him, or even when she was standing over him.

"Mmm mm!" Bulma cleared her throat for the genin's attention. Naruto looked up and blushed as he saw the girl in front of him.

Naruto was not good at making friends, let alone talking to females. The one he saw the most mainly abused him with every chance she received. He stared at the girl with a dumbfounded expression.

Bulma stared at the boy. She waited a few seconds to see if he would speak, and glared when he didn't. Her face twisted into an angry scowl. "Don't you know too greet a pretty girl when you see her!" This caused Naruto to flinch, he didn't expect her to yell at him... but then again he should be used to it.

"I-well-urgh!" Naruto jumped to his feet and turned away as his face burned brightly. He quickly inhaled and exhaled to regain the color in his face.

Bulma stared at the kid in amusement._ That isn't weird at all... _ Bulma though. The kid suddenly turned around. A large goofy grin was plastered to his noticeably pink cheeks.

"M-m-my name's Naruto Uzamaki!" he scratched the back of his head as he spoke. Naruto mentally cursed himself for stuttering in front of the pretty girl.

Bulma giggled at the blondes stutter. "I'm Bulma Briefs."she held out a hand for the still sitting ninja too take. Naruto looked from the hand towards the girls face a few times. He reached up and grabbed the hand which he noticed was extremely soft.

"Briefs? Huh, these kids just got more interesting." Jiraiya whispered to himself. He was recovering from the ultimate jutsu which he must admit was pretty dangerous. He slowly sat up and looked towards his pupil and the girl. He noticed the other kid was having the time of his life making sandcastles, laughing like he was insane.

"Naruto huh?" the girl asked. "That's a nice name!" she said with a small smile, causing the blonde to blush. "Where are you from?"

"I'm from Konoha." the still blushing preteen responded, causing a gasp from Bulma.

"You're a ninja?" she asked, well more like shrieked.

Naruto panicked inwardly. He couldn't lose this girl, it was his first chance at making a friend! "I- I-I" Curse that damn stutter!

"Hey, look!" Everyone was knocked out of their train of thought as they heard Goku yelling. Naruto

Jiraiya instantly looked at the body of water and couldn't hold back his smile. He recognized the figure slowly approaching on the back of the turtle. The figure wore a large orange beach shirt with black random letters on it, as well as some too short for comfort shorts. He wore flip flops as well as holding a thick looking stick in his hand. He was a bald old man, with a thick white mustache. On his back was a large turtle shell.

As the man neared the beach, he couldn't help but smirk at the looks the group was giving him. _"That's right, admire me."_ he thought. _"I'm the coolest!"_

The old man jumped onto the beach, which granted him an odd stare from everyone, except the Sannin.

"Which one of you helped out my turtle?" he asked the trio of kids that circled him. Naruto's face scrunched into an angry scowl. The man's voice was high and scratchy which pained his ears. He felt like he wasn't going to like this guy.

"Who are you, Grandpa?" Goku asked with wide eyes.

"I am Master Roshi!" the man said in a voice so cocky that it made Pervy Sage sound like a wimp. He opened his mouth to speak again, but was cut off by a young loud mouth ninja.

"Who cares who you are!" Naruto yelled whilst pointing at the old man. "We didn't even ask!"

Bulma and Roshi face palmed, causing a giggle from Goku. Jiraiya even caught himself laughing at the blonde's dumb remark.

"You idiot!" he yelled while laughing his loud, arrogant laugh. Naruto looked around as his face turned a deep crimson. This only caused Jiraiya to laugh harder, which the old turtle hermit didn't like very much.

He turned to Jiraiya, whom he just noticed was there. As he looked at the man he started stroking his beard. Something about the man was familiar, whether it was the cocky attitude or the confident smirk that he was receiving, he wasn't sure.

Jiraiya smiled at the old man. "Finally recognize me, eh master?" he replied in his cool voice. He walked up to the man and stopped in front of him. "It's been a while."

Roshi stared at the man for a few long seconds. He finally started laughing in his creepy old man laugh. "Hahaha Jiraiya my boy! How's it goin?"

"I'm OK, you know can't complain too much being a legendary ninja and a world renown auth- Ow!" Jiraiya released a pained yell as he was clonked in the head by Roshi's stick. He rubbed his sore head which already sprouted a knot. "The hell was that for?"

"Just to make sure it wasn't one of your stupid clone's."

"Hey, sensei!" Jiraiya looked at Naruto with an expression showing both annoyance and pain. "Kick his ass! You're a Sannin for Kami sake!"

Goku started jumping up and down excitedly. "A fight? Oh boy!"

Master Roshi turned his back on Jiraiya and faced his turtle. "Which one helped you?" he asked, completely ignoring the young boy's request.

The turtle pointed his flipper at Goku. "That boy!"

"I see, I see!" The old man turned and faced Goku. "Allow me to commend you for your hard work. I have a wonderful present to give you as thanks!"

The word present caught the attention of both of the young boys. "Present?" they asked in unison.

"Yes!" the old man shouted in irritation. "Nimbus!" he yelled into the air.

Naruto looked into the air. Although he didn't pay much attention in class, he did remember hearing Shikamaru mention the word nimbus while they were 'studying the sky'. He flinched as he saw a small golden cloud come bolting towards him. Goku let out a scream while Bulma eeped. The cloud came to a halt directly in front of the small semi circle.

Jiraiya looked at the old man with a shocked expression. "You're giving away the Nimbus?" He smile slowly twisted into a smirk. "You must really be getting old. Immortality isn't what it's hyped up to be, huh?"

A large vein bulged out of the old man's head. "I am not old!" he yelled while flailing his arms about. "I am a hip fella that the ladies can't resist!"

"Hah!" Jiraiya laughed at Roshi. "You must mistake yourself for me!"

"In your dreams you old frog!" Roshi yelled while shaking a fist at Jiraiya.

"You couldn't hope to keep up you perverted old turtle!" Jiraiya yelled while mocking his movements.

Bulma sighed as the old men argued. "Guys, he's eating the cloud."

Both men simultaneously turned towards Goku. They were both amazed and disgusted that the boy had half of the golden cloud in his mouth. "Get my precious cloud out of your mouth!"

Goku coughed the cloud up. He held his tongue out of his mouth and wiped it vigorously. "Not to be mean, mister, but that present wasn't really good."

Roshi's face was red with anger. "This is a very valuable cloud that can fly you anywhere in the sky!"

Naruto folded his arms across his chest. "Why the hell would a turtle master deal with clouds?" he asked with a scowl.

"Ignore the detail's, kid," Jiraiya said in a deep tone.

The child called Goku's face lit up. "Wow, I can fly in the sky?" he asked with excitement.

Roshi smirked. _Oh yea, I'm cool! _He thought as the small child smiled. "Amazing, right?" he held up a finger. "But there's one catch- only those with a pure heart can ride Nimbus! So if you aren't a good boy, you won't be able to!"

The hermit turned towards the cloud and jumped.

_Idiot_ the Sannin thought as he watched the man fall hard on his rump and let loose a shriek. Upon impact, Naruto let loose a whooping laugh, which was quickly followed by Bulma. They laughed even harder as the turtle tried to lift him to his feet. They didn't even realize the black haired boy had jump upon the olden cloud.

"Yaay!" Goku yelled as he jumped up and down upon it. He suddenly bolted forward and flew in loop-DE-loops.

"Hey, no fair! I want one!" Naruto yelled at the old man.

"Sorry, but I don't do anything for you if you don't do for me." Roshi never took his eyes off the boy twirling in the air, instantly admiring the skill the boy held with the cloud.

"Well what about me?" Bulma exclaimed. "I helped him get here too!"

"Is this true?" Roshi asked his turtle. The turtle quickly shook his head.

"I gave you saltwater you slimy rock!" Bulma yelled at him.

Master Roshi smiled a very... _creepy_ smile. His cheeks stained a bright pink. Jiraiya instantly recognized the look and rolled his eyes. "I'll give you something else if you show me your panties..." he giggled the last few words out.

Bulma shrieked as she looked at the old man. "M-my panties?" she muttered.

Naruto jerked back. "What!" he yelled as he blushed a deep crimson. He felt his face getting hotter with each passing second.

Turtle was not very fond of this idea. He turned to Roshi with a shocked expression. "You're a Sannin!" he yelled. "Now I know why the Nimbus rejected you!"

Silence!" Roshi hissed. Bulma blushed a red that would make a tomato jealous. She moved from foot to foot nervously. "Well... if you just want to see my panties..." She slowly grabbed onto her shirt and started to lift it.

_Holy crap, she's going to do it!_ Jiraiya couldn't help but stare at the blue haired teen.

Naruto growled as he shook with both embarrassment and anger. He couldn't let this girl entertain these pervs! He quickly came to a conclusion of what to do..

"Sexy Jutsu!"

"No!" Jiraiya yelled as the beach was surrounded by smoke.

"AAAGHHH!" The smoke cleared to reveal two twitching unconscious Sannin. The girls disappeared not long after their emergence since Naruto was low on chakra. He fell to the ground along with them, panting and giggling tiredly.

Bulma walked up to the twitching hermit. "You pervert!" she yelled, but her only response was a mixture between a giggle and a gurgle. Bulma smiled as she saw the gold pendant around the perverts neck. She lifted it up and smiled. "Can we please have this?" she asked the man.

"You can have whatever you want..." he replied goofy, barely containing his giggle.

Bulma smiled and lifted it from around his neck. She stood back up and waved it in the air. "Hey Goku, I gotta Dragonball!" she yelled.

"Yaay!" Goku yelled as he twirled in the air. "Can we go now, I'm hungry!"

Bulma giggled. "Of course we can." She turned towards the two old men that were currently trying to sit up (and failing miserably at it). "Later! And thanks a lot for the Dragonball!" She hopped on her motor scooter and started it's engine. She looked back at Naruto, whom was still laying on the ground. "Hey kid, wanna come?" she asked.

Naruto quickly sprung to his feet. His body felt much better and he could finally move. "You bet I will! I still gotta kick the monkey boy's ass!" Naruto ran towards the girl and then stopped. He looked back at Jiraiya and smirked. "I'll be back old man, then you have to teach me that jutsu like you promised!"

"Yea whatever..." Jiraiya grumbled as he wiped his red stained face with his sleeve.

"Dattebayo!" The orange clad ninja shouted as he jumped in the air, causing Bulma to giggle.

"Don't yell that the entire trip!" she laughed out as she sped up, with Naruto running a few feet behind her.

Goku looked back and saw Naruto following him. His face spread into a wide smile. "Hey, the kitty is coming!"

'I'm not a kitty!"


	4. Chapter 4

Oolong the Terrible

"You called, Hokage?" Kakashi asked as he walked into the Hokage's office. He didn't even glance at the old man, his eye was focused on his favorite orange book. He casually stopped mere inches from the desk.

Hiruzen was standing at the window of his office. He knew that Kakashi didn't care much for Naruto (he heard the boy mention it to him on numerous occasions), but he was still his instructor. He didn't even glance back as the man spoke. "It's about Naruto. It's very urgent."

"Is it about Jiraiya training him? I was informed about it already, I'm fine with it." The Third Hokage noticed the way the man spat Jiraiya's name, but decided to hold it to himself for the time being. "Besides, I wouldn't have had much time anyway. I'm teaching Sasuke to master the Sharingan."

"It isn't about that." The old man said with a strong voice. "Do you recall hearing anything unusual today?"

Kakashi thought for a few seconds, but couldn't think of anything. "Not that I can recall."

The Third exhaled. He nearly forgot who he was talking to. If it wasn't reading amazing works of literature or torturing genin, it would go right by Kakashi. His carefree nature was almost dangerous, considering he was an A ranked ninja. "Today... I heard a yell that was unmistakably the boy's." Kakashi looked up from his reading.

"Surely, you must be hearing things. I know the speed that the old man travels by, and even at a slow pace then they would be out of range." Kakashi looked back towards his book. "He's fine, I'm sure of it."

The old village leader turned and faced Kakashi. He tried his hardest to maintain his calm. "I understand how you feel about Jiraiya, but what about... _his_ son?"

Kakashi flinched. He closed his only revealed eye and slid his book into his pocket. He breathed deeply as he thought about his old sensei. "I'm sorry sir, but as much as I would like to help locate the duo, I'm simply not the right person for the job. Maybe you should ask Kurenai, her tracking team would be the perfect choice for this." Kakashi spoke with a much softer tone. Hiruzen almost felt bad for bringing up the name of his successor. He decided that arguing with Kakashi would have been much too draining and dropped the subject.

"Very well, send me Kurenai at once."

Naruto had to say that his time with the duo of Goku and Bulma was... amusing. First, they went to the girls house. Once in the house, Naruto was shocked as the girl started yelling about her panties. The boy Goku mentioned something about her not having balls and the next thing Naruto knew the girl was holding a contraption that he later learned was called a gun. Amazingly after an onslaught of small metal projectiles, Goku only suffered holes in his shirt.

After everything mellowed out, the girl placed her house into a small 'capsule'. Naruto was beyond shocked at this and made her open the capsule again to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Not long after the kids arrived at a village that seemed abandoned, yet they learned that everyone was hiding from some monstrosity called Oolong. After some talking to a villager (whom struck Goku on the head in fear), Bulma agreed that they would get rid of Oolong, but only in exchange for the Dragon Ball in an elderly woman's possession. And now Naruto and Goku stood dressed up as girls in the center of the town, being drooled over by a large pig faced being with horns.

"Wow, you ladies sure are hot!" the demon said. "Two for the price of one, and they both are pretty. Man, is it my lucky day or what?"

"Yes, just take us already!" Naruto said in his best girl voice, which wasn't that good. His butt was really starting to itch under this hideous pink dress. He looked over to the side and saw Goku trembling. "Hey, what's wrong?" Naruto whispered loudly.

"I gotta pee!" Goku whispered back, whilst jumping from foot to foot.

"I know! You're afraid of the way I look, aren't you?" The two boy's in disguise ignored the 'demon' as he burst into a large cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared there stood a man in a large trench coat and a cane tucked under his left arm, with a large top hat in his left hand. He leaned into a bow. "How about this my lady? Or would you prefer a younger man?" The man was thrust to the ground as the door he was standing in front of burst open.

"N-nice to meet you! I'm Bulma!" The blue haired girl stood at the door staring at the man.

Oolong stared at the girl with his jaw hanging. His eyes instantly went to her breast. "What size is your-oof!" he was cut off as a foot connected to his jaw. The man was sent tumbling backwards and landed with a thud a few feet away.

"What the HFIL?" Bulma yelled. "There was a perfectly good boyfriend for me and you ruined it Naruto!"

Naruto growled as he threw off his dress, his face a bright shade of red. Goku quickly followed suit and ran to a tree behind them to relieve himself.

"Don't get all googly eyed over him!" the Jinchuuriki shouted. "He's the enemy!"

Bulma growled and yelled with an apparent rage. "My one reason for collecting the Dragon Balls were for a hot boyfriend! I could have saved my wish to be rich instead!"

As the two argued, they didn't notice the transformed man slowly rising to his feet, a scowl spread across his face. "Hey, are you telling me that... those girls... weren't girls?" he asked as he saw the two boys, one pulling up his pants and the other rubbing his head where the girl just struck him.

"You think you can make a fool of me?" the man yelled, finally gaining the groups attention. "I'll teach you all to mess with me!" A loud 'poof' was heard as the man transformed into a large bull, causing a shriek from Bulma, a scowl from Naruto, and a smirk from Goku.

"Can I beat him up now?" Goku asked as he placed a hand on his pole. He lowered into a fighting stance, his smirk widening.

"Do what you want, he's nothing to me!" Bulma yelled as she ran into the house she recently exited.

The bull seemed to be nervous. He kicked up dust with his right hoove. "You sure you wanna fight me?" he asked with a smirk.

"Bring it on!" Goku bounced in excitement, a small giggle escaping him.

The bull started sweating profusely and looking at the two boys. "B-but I'm really strong!" he yelled in an attempt to seem scary. "The two of you have no chance, don't you know that?"

A large grin spread on Naruto's face. "Is that so?" He crossed his fingers and a large cloud of smoke ensued the village. From the smoke his voice could be heard. "Then what about two hundred?" There was literally a clone in every street of the town, even some standing on buildings.

The bull-man-pig was blanketed in sweat as he saw the numerous boys. He could only mutter two words as the boys all jumped at him. "Aw crap..." 

Sakura was sitting in the flower shop with her friend Ino. After the girls match in the Chunin exams, they were much closer than they were before. Ino's father invited Sakura over for dinner and after a tense start, they both realized they were acting rather childish about Sasuke. They would either spend their days at the flower shop, or at the hospital with Rock Lee.

Lately, however, Sasuke really avoided the pink haired genin. Of course they weren't that close to start with, but now he went out of his way to avoid her. She remembered the last time she tried to speak to him.

_Flashback:_

_Sakura went to her teams training grounds. She knew that she'd run into Sasuke here, and the sound of steel hitting steel proved that she was right. As she got closer, she straightened her hair even more. _

_Sakura was carrying a basket full of food that she personally prepared for her crush. Now that the dobe was out of the way, there was no one to interrupt her time alone with him. She was waiting for this opportunity ever since her team was assembled, and she wasn't going to let it past. _

"_S-Sasuke!" Sakura yelled as she entered the training field dubbed Training Area 7. She saw the raven haired boy was shirtless and it took all of her will power to not pass out from excitement. _

_Sasuke didn't turn to look at Sakura. His hair fell over his eyes, but he continued to stare forward. "What do you want?" he asked in his cold voice. _

He's talking to me!_ The girl thought as her heart fluttered. Ever since his last encounter with Naruto, Sasuke would brush her off and walk past her as if she didn't exist. Maybe he was finally ready to express his feelings for her! "I brought you some food!" she smiled and continued walking towards the boy. "It's dango, I hope you like it!" she giggled. I remember when Kakashi took us to eat one time and you almost ate more than Naru-" _

_Sakura froze as Sasuke turned to her. His Sharingan was spinning and it scared her a lot. She shook visibly as he opened his mouth. After a few seconds he finally muttered some words. _

"_You're so... annoying."_

_End Flashback_

"Hellooooooooooo earth to Sakura!" Sakura realized that Ino was waving a hand in her face. She realized that she must've doze off for a second. Ino pouted at her. "You really didn't hear anything that I said?"

"No, I'm sorry Ino." Sakura blushed. "What were you talking about again?"

Ino sighed. "The one time I said something that I would think you would approve of, you make me have to repeat myself." she smiled. "But, I said I was over Sasuke."

Sakura eye's got wide as she heard this statement. "Are you serious? How? When? WHY?"

Ino giggled. "Slow down, slow down!" she said as she rose her hands defensively. She crossed her arms across her chest. "But to answer each question, yes I'm serious. After seeing the way he..." Ino's face twisted into one of both disgust and pain, "assaulted Naruto, I realized that he wasn't as perfect as I thought him to be. What if one day it's ME that he decides to attack. I definitely can't take a beating like that, and I don't even know how Naruto survived it. And besides." Ino shrugged. "Naruto's much cuter when you think about it."

Sakura's blush intensified as Ino finished her statement. "Naruto isn't nearly as cute as Sasuke!" she yelled. She looked to the ground. "I'll have to admit that the beating he gave Naruto was pretty harsh though. He could've won it and let Naruto go, but he kept hitting... and hitting... and hitting..." Sakura trembled at remembering this. It was easily the hardest thing she had to watch in her entire life.

"Yeah, and he seemed to enjoy it... who the hell want's a psychotic boyfriend? I'll have to pass." As Ino finished talking, the bell on her shop door opened. "Oh, hello Kurenai Sensei!" Ino said excitedly.

"Hey Ino, Sakura." Kurenai waved as she approached the girls. Kurenai was the definition of beauty. Her tall slender frame is coveted by many, as well as her flowing black hair. Her most striking feature was her eye's which were red with an extra ring in them. She was wearing mesh armor with only the right sleeve and a thorn pattern. Her arms were covered by bandages as well as her legs.

"What brings you here? It's usually Asuma Sensei grabbing you flowers, not the other way around."

Kurenai blushed an intense red and her eyes went to the floor, which resulted in a snicker from Sakura. "It's nothing like that!" she said a little louder than she expected. She quickly let the blush fade away. "I came for you, Ino. You've just been assigned to a B ranked mission.

Both girls eyes went wide. "WHAT?" they yelled in unison.

"It's a secret mission, I'll explain the details on the road." Kurenai stretched her arms above her head. "We leave in exactly an hour, so be by the gate then." She turned to walk away, leaving the two girls in shock.

"W-wait!" Ino yelled. "Why are you telling me this? Shouldn't Asuma Sensei be the one to tell me?" Confusion was evident on the girls face.

Kurenai sighed, she knew that this question was going to arise. "He's not going with you, you're being assigned to my team in the place of Shino." Kurenai paused, expecting another outburst from the girl. She was surprised that she stayed silent, so she continued. "We'll be gone for a week or two, so make sure to bring only necessities." Kurenai walked through the door as she finished her statement.

Ino stood up from her stool, and was followed by Sakura. They both were curious as to the mission, but knew that they weren't going to get any info.

Sakura smiled at Ino."Well, Ino-pig, it looks like you'll be gone for a while." she held out her hand. "I'm going to check up on Lee, so I'll see you when you get back, k?"

Ino smiled and shook the pinkette's hand. "You got it, Forehead. I'll make sure to come see you as soon as I get back!"

"I'll hold you to that!" Sakura said as she turned and ran to the door. "Later!

Goku and Naruto made quick work of Oolong. He was beaten to the point that he returned to his base form, a small bipedal pig. His pink body was plastered with bruises, and his right eye was swollen shut.

After leading the village to his house, they discovered that the girls were actually living a great life. Oolong owned a large mansion that he kept them in. He pampered the girls with gifts and rare jewels, and he even admitted to being tired of them. After some talking, they were finally handed the dragon ball.

"Hey, pig!" Bulma yelled at Oolong. "You're coming with us!"

Oolong shook his head swiftly. "No way! I refuse to, you guys fried my pork skin!"

"But your ability will be useful, I'm sure of it!"

Naruto stepped forward with a grin. "Henge!" In a small puff of smoke, the boy turned into a copy of the pig. Well, a copy without the bruises. The three onlookers all was surprised at this.

"How'd you do that?" Goku asked in awe. "Can you teach me?"

"Hey, that's copyright! You can't steal my technique!" Oolong yelled in anger.

Bulma smiled. The boy was full of surprises. She looked at Oolong and stuck out her tongue. "You got lucky, punk. But I feel like you should be punished somehow."

"Ooo oh I gotta idea!" Goku yelled while jumping up and down. "Maybe he can let the people live with him, then they all can be friends!" Goku stood with a wide smile, clearly happy with his plan.

Oolong shook his head. "No way! I built this mansion with my own stolen money for ME and my girls, not all of these dirty villagers!"

"Shut it Porky!" Naruto yelled as he bonked him on the head.

Bulma nodded slowly. "Well that's an idea... How about you stay here and be their servant?"

"No no no no no! I'd rather travel with you demons than be stuck here wit- ouch!"

"I said shut it!" Naruto was angered even more as the pig used the term demon.

"Alright, so that settles it. I guess I'll be the one to pass the message."

Naruto turned back into himself and created a clone. "I got this! I'm going to leave this clone here to make sure that Oolong wont do nothing stupid!" Him and the clone looked at each other and nodded.

"Aye aye!" the clone yelled, much too excited for his own good. He picked up the pig and ran into the mansion. Bulma giggled as she watched the clone disappear into the building with a groaning Oolong on his shoulder.

"Well let's get going!" Bulma yelled excitedly. She opened the capsule and released her motorbike. She pulled on her helmet and cranked it up. She looked back at the blonde boy. "Needa ride?" she asked in a cool voice.

"Heck yea!" Naruto yelled. He jumped on the motorbike and clung around the girls waist, causing a blush to spread across her face.

"Hee hee let's race!" Goku took off on Nimbus, with Bulma and Goku in tow.

"So how's thing's going on your side old man?" Jiraiya asked Master Roshi. Jiraiya was a big fan of the Turtle Hermit. As a child he attended the Turtle school and passed with flying colors, all before he was five years old, when his father sent him to Konoha.

"It's OK I guess. I'm the same young man I was before!" the old man flashed a toothy grin and held up the piece sign. How's things going with you and..." The Turtle Hermit raised his eyebrows twice. "Not so little Tsunami."

Jiraiya returned the grin and shrugged his shoulders. "The same way it's always been. Her pounding on me," he grimaced as he said this, but it morphed into a sly smirk, "and then _ME _pounding _HER, _HAHAHA!"

"Ha ha, that's my boy!" The older hermit exclaimed. His face fell as his laughing died down. "It's been ages since your old Master has seen any action. I think I'm starting to lose my groove.

_You sure as hell are, who uses that term anymore?_ "No way Master, you taught me my moves, it's no way that you're rusty!"

Master Roshi sweat heavily as his pupil questioned him. "I... well... you see..." he fumbled with his words, thinking of an excuse to have.

"I know what the problem is!" Jiraiya boomed, causing Roshi to flinch.

"Y-you do?" The old master looked away from his student. _No way... he can't know about-"_

Jiraiya smirked wide as he patted his sensei on the back. "You just need to get out. Come out tonight with me, there's a party in South City, let's get there."

"Aaah..." Roshi relaxed as he exhaled. A sudden realization dawned on him. "How do you plan to get there? It's miles away from here, and by sea at that!"

Jiraiya continued to smile. "Gambunta owes me. I beat him at drinking... again!" he bit his finger as he spoke, drawing blood. "You ready?" he asked in a cool tone as he walked to the door. He suddenly turned around realizing that the hermit didn't respond. "Old man?" he asked, and was a little shocked at the sight he saw (with an emphasis on _little._)

Roshi was leaning over in his seat, watching a female exercising program. The girls were leaning stretching their ankles to their ears. And Flexible Felicia was basically begging to be looked at in her skin tight spandex. Who was he to not look at her?

"You never changed, old master."

A/N: And that's it. OK guys, I'm not gonna lie... I think I need someone to beta for me. It would be great, because I'm not the most exciting writer. I feel that with someone's help, I could make this story MUCH more exciting. Soooooo... if anyone's interested... pm? I'll read you guys stories and review and choose the author that best fits my style. Well... thanks for reading!


	5. Yamcha, The Desert Bandit

Yamcha, The Desert Bandit

On a hot, dry day five figures could be seen trudging through a large desert. There wasn't a trace of wind, or even any wildlife for that matter. Large rock structures dotted the area, that and sand of course. They all looked fatigued, each hot and agitated beyond belief. They all were silent, except for the heavy panting of one individual.

One blonde girl finally spoke up. "Kiba, are you sure this is the way that he went?" Ino asked as she wiped her forehead with her wrist for the umpteenth time.

"Umm... yea, I'm sure!" Kiba answered, sounding unsure whilst scratching the back of his hair. His hoody was wrapped around his waist as he stood shirtless. A small growl could be heard from beside him. He quickly looked down and whispered "shut it, Akamaru!"

The sole adult of the group released a large sigh. She felt that the boy was telling the untruth, but she didn't want to hurt his pride. "Hinata, scan the desert. There may be a chance that their captures are hiding nearby." Even as Kurenai spoke the words, she knew that they were false. Someone capturing Jiraiya and the container of the Kyuubi? They had to be some pretty bad ass ninja.

"Hai Kurenai sensei!" Hinata spoke with a soft tone. "Byakugan!" she said as veins popped out of the side of her face.

"Anything interesting?" Ino asked. "If not, then puppy over here will get the stuffing beat out of him." she looked at Kiba, who responded with a snort.

"What can you do to me?" he asked. "You lost to Sakura, there's no way you can scratch me."

"And you lost to the dead last, you flea ridden mutt!" Ino yelled with venom in her voice.

Kiba flinched, but quickly recovered. "He cheated! Farting shouldn't be allowed against an Inuzuka, you blonde pig!"

Ino's face turned a shade of red. She raised a fist a Kiba, whilst yelling profusely. "Well maybe I'll take over your body and let one loose! I'm sure that your diet of raw meat and feces will be oh so delightful to sniff you mangy hound!" her icy voice caused a chill to run down Kiba's spine.

Kurenai shook her head. This was ridiculous, she really needed time away from those two. "Hinata. I'm going to... scout the area. Who knows, some ninja maybe trailing us." she drawled out the ending, trying to make her lie sound convincing. Hinata nodded slightly. This was the only confirmation that Kurenai needed, and she quickly ran off.

The two genin argued amongst themselves. Akamaru walked away from them and laid at Hinata's feet. The Hyuga child continued looking around. She suddenly tensed up and pointed. "Someone's over there!" Hinata's voice rang out, quickly ending the argument. Both of her teammates gave each other one strong glare, then they turned to Hinata. Hinata squinted. "No... there's two of them. One of them..." Hinata's quiet voice got even softer. "isn't human?" she silently asked.

Kiba giggled and ran a hand through his hair. "Whoa Hinata, never saw you as the one to make a joke!" he snickered out.

Hinata blushed a deep crimson. "I-i-I'm not kidding!" she said. She looked from Ino to Kiba then back towards the energy signatures. Terror was evident on her face. "And they're coming this way!"

"Y-you gotta be kidding me!" Kiba groaned. He looked into the same direction as Hinata. A smile slowly spread across his face. "Akamaru, it's time to have some fun!" he received two barks in agreement. The puppy even started jumping around in a circle.

Ino was confused as to what was going on, but she looked in the direction anyways. She could hear a loud roar approaching, which caused her to shake a little.

As the roar rose in decibels, a single figure could be seen rapidly approaching. Ino looked around, but could only see one figure. She did remember, however, that Asuma always told her that her eye's could deceive her.

After five long seconds, the object came to a halt a few feet in front of them. A man jumped off of the object and landed in front of the trio. "Yo." he said cooky.

Ino studied the boy. She saw that he had long, black hair that came past his shoulders. His shirt was green and sleeveless with the kanji for easy in the middle. He wore long beige pants as well as blue boots with white and red designs. His body was a muscular build, and he stood taller than each of the genin.

All in all, he was hot.

Kiba looked at Ino and saw her drooling over the man. He shook his head and steppe towards the guy, pointing a finger. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded.

"Fufufu," the man chuckled, "I am the Hyena whose Citadel is this very wasteland..." he paused for dramatic effect. "Yamcha."

A small cat jumped off the moving object that Yamcha possessed. It was blue with a beige underbelly. "And I'm Puar!" it yelled, trying to sound intimidating.

Kiba smirked and stepped forward, hands in his pockets, with Akamaru by his side. "I'm Kiba. And this is Akamaru," said dog barked. Kiba motioned towards a fidgety Hinata. "This is my teammate, Hinata, and this blonde is-"

Kiba was cut off as Ino ran up to Yamcha. "I'm Ino Yamanaka!" she said with a large smile while she shook his hand. "It's an honor to meet you, Yamcha." she said Yamcha in a seductive way, causing the man to flinch, Hinata to blush, and Kiba to groan.

Yamcha jumped away from the girl in a frenzy. "G-get off of me!" he yelled whilst knelt over, heaving to catch his breath.

Ino stared at the boy with confusion evident on her face. She knew that she should have felt rejected, but it happened so much with sadistic Sasuke to the point where it doesn't hurt. It strengthened her "I'm here for your money and capsules." Yamcha glared at the three. "I wouldn't want to hurt you all, but hey, it's all about the money.

Kiba bared his teeth back and growled. "Sorry bud, but I don't plan on giving you anything, except an ass whooping." Akamaru barked in agreement. He looked back at his female companions and flashed them a cheeky smile. "I got this punk."

"B-but... K-kiba... I think that he's-"

"Hinata!" Kiba closed his eyes and leaned back on his heel. The Hyuga princess looked up at her companion. Him standing there with his smirk of confidence removed all of her previous doubts. "I got this."

The Hyuga heiress let a small smile spread across her face. She backed away from the soon to be fight slowly, her eyes never leaving those of Yamcha. He stared right back at her with a look of arrogance.

Ino looked from Kiba and Yamcha and sighed. She walked away with a dreamy look on her face. "Get him, Kiba!" she yelled enthusiastically.

The two boys stared each other down. They both held a look of confidence on their face. A slight breeze flew by, causing their hair to dance in the wind. In Yamaha's mind, there was no way that he could lose to this punk kid. In Kiba's, he knew he had to redeem himself for losing to the dead last.

After a few second pause, Yamcha finally spoke. "Listen kid, the offer's still up. If you give me what you have, I'll let you and your girlfriends walk away."

Kiba chuckled slightly. "It's funny, 'cause I was just about to say the same to you." He lowered himself into his feral stance, his hands out at his side and claws out. "I got this one in the bag!" Kiba yelled as he dashed at Yamcha.

Yamcha skillfully side stepped his opponent. He quickly swatted away a feral right slash, then a left. He raised a hand to block a follow up back slash, then jumped and dodged as he realized it was a feint for a leg sweep. Kiba grit his teeth as he released an onslaught of scratches, each being parried by Yamcha's palms.

Kiba growled as he jumped away from his opponent. Yamcha smirked as he popped his neck and wrists. "You're pretty good." His face formed a toothy grin. "But unfortunately for you, I'm very good!"

Kiba growled even deeper. "I'll believe it when I see it, cat boy!" he spat at his opponent.

"Well then," Yamcha smirked again. "Guess you're ready for my offense!" Yamcha crouched and raised his hands out to his side. His right arm was sticking out further than the left, with his index finger raised slightly. He moved his hands in a steady rhythm.

Puar started jumping on the side lines. "Get him, Yamcha! Show em whose boss!" The cat giggled. He froze, however, once Akamaru barked at him.

"You ready?" Yamcha asked. Before Kiba could respond, Yamcha rushed in and kneed him in his stomach, causing the boys eye to bulge and spit to fly out. Yamcha jumped away and punched Kiba quickly with two rights and a strong left, which sent the boy sailing backwards. Yamcha wouldn't allow that, however, as he grabbed the boys leg and slammed him into the ground.

Yamcha smirked at the boy as he struggled to lift to his elbows. His puppy ran to his side and whimpered as he licked his scowling face.

Hinata covered her mouth in shock. Kiba wasn't really strong, but compared to this guy he was looking like an academy student! She wanted to intervene, but she knew Kiba wouldn't want her too. She looked on in worry, considering what she should do next.

Ino looked on from the side with a look of concern. She had to admit that this guy was cute, and she never really considered Kiba a friend, but he was still her teammate. She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Hey Yamcha, leave him al-"

"Shut it, Blondie!" Kiba yelled at Ino, causing the girl to flinch slightly. The boy climbed to his feet and held his hands in the tiger seal. In a puff of smoke, Akamaru turned into an exact replica of Kiba, complete with scars and all from his battle with Yamcha.

The raven haired bandit widened his eyes in shock. "Hey, now there's two of you!" he exclaimed.

"Yea... and we're twice as dangerous now!" 'Kiba' yelled whilst growling on all fours. The two clones slowly started circling the bandit, snarling dangerously while eying the man.

Yamcha returned to his fighting stance, glancing side to side at his opponents. He wasn't worried in the slightest, he knew that he was still in control of this battle.

"Fang over fang!" Yamcha jumped swiftly out of the way as the spinning duo attempted to pierce him. He wasn't given a moment to breath as the duo quickly retaliated to attack. Yamcha ducked under a slash at his face, then blocked a kick with both forearms. He kicked up off of the ground as a knee flew at him from the opposite direction. Once he landed, he was assaulted from both sides by the feral duo. '

Yamcha dodged and dodged, yet he would still get hit a few times. He was getting scratched and bit and honestly it was starting to sting. Yamcha was sweating profusely as he received a punch to the cheek. "Hey Puar!" he yelled as he grabbed a foot that was coming at him, yet was punched in the back of his head by the other. "A little help here!" he yelled.

"R-right!" the feline yelled. "Change form!" In a puff of smoke, the cat turned into a large skunk.

Hinata and Ino looked at the animal with surprise. "Am I on drugs... or did that cat just henge?" the blonde kunoichi asked her partner. Hinata shook her head as she looked on.

Kiba smirked. "What's that supposed to do?" he asked as he kicked Yamcha in the back, causing the bandit to stumble forward into a punch from his dopple ganger.

"This!" Puar turned around and sprayed a strong blast of foul odor onto the group. Yamcha covered his mouth and eyes as the smell approached.

"What the HFIL?" Kiba yelled as he tried to run away. The odor stuck fast, and his enhanced sense of smell crippled him even more. Akamaru whimpered as he reverted to his original form. He dashed away, running around attempting to get the stench off of him.

"Whoa!" Ino and Hinata quickly jumped away a couple of meters as they saw the scene before them, each covering their noses. This had to be the worse smell ever, even trumping Choji's bellybutton!

"I'm not done yet!" The cat morphed into a large blue hammer with a face. He swung hard and hit the puppy in it's side, sending it squealing and rolling through the dirt.

"Akamaru!" Kiba yelled as he watched in horror. His best friend lay motionless on his side, causing the Inuzuka to fear the worst.

The man known as Yamcha simply smirked at the retreating girls. He gave his partner a smile and a thumbs up. "Great job, Puar!" The small feline smiled in pride as he pooed back into his original form.

"Now, time for some payback!" Yamcha ran at Kiba and lowered his stance. "Wolf fang fist!"

"W-what?" Kiba stammered as he attempted to catch his breath. Before he could react, he was pummeled with a furious series of punches, each getting faster and faster. Yamcha tried to raise his arm to guard, but Yamcha would go around it and land a clean punch. After a long twenty seconds of this, Yamcha put the bottom of his palms together. He released a wolf howl as he pushed his palms into the young genins chest, sending him into the air with a pained scream. Kiba hit the ground hard and rolled onto his side, clawing the ground in obvious pain.

The sand bandit looked back at his opponent, whom struggled to rise to his feet. "I told you to quit, kid," he said cockily. He lowered himself as the boy attempted to stand back up.

Kiba growled at him with fury and tears in his eyes, the stench being more than he could bear. His forearm covered his nose, which didn't help block out the smell in the slightest. 'I'm gonna kill this cocky bastard!' he thought as he glared at the grinning bandit.

"Now, time to end this!" Yamcha rushed the genin, ready to end this battle. Ino inhaled deeply and turned away, unable to face her teammates defeat.

Hinata looked at Yamcha approaching with wide eyes. Her entire body shook in fear. Where was Kurenai Sensei? Kiba was the strongest out of the three of them, so if he went down then they all would as well. Each step the man took towards Kiba made her shiver even more.

"Stop!" Hinata yelled as the bandit was a few feet in front of Kiba. She ran and jumped in his path, protecting her comrade in her fighting stance. Her body quivered as she stared him down, yet she wouldn't move. The veins surrounding her eyes stuck out, showing her kekkei genkai.

Kiba looked at his teammate with wide eye's, containing both surprise and anger. "Hinata, get away!" he roared at her. "This is MY fight!" He attempted to stand, but stumbled backwards. Ino rushed to his side and caught him before he hit the ground.

"Kiba, you're in no condition to fight. Hell, you can't even stand!" Ino mumbled as she draped his arm over her shoulder. She grunted as she stood, which he replied with a whine of pain. "Maybe Hinata can hold him off until our Sensei returns."

The Hyuga and the criminal stared into one another's eyes. Yamcha looked at the girl and was impressed, most people ran in fear at the mention of his name! He couldn't stop the smirk as he watched her. "I don't wanna hurt you, Princess." He held out his hand. "Just hand me the goods and this would all be over."

Hinata looked back at her team. Akamaru was laying on his side, a pile of vomit sitting inches from his face. His fur was drenched a yellowish tint, the spray must've hit him harder than Kiba. Akamaru shuddered with each slow breath, his pain was obvious. She sighed, happy that he was at least still breathing. She then looked at Ino and Kiba. Kiba was laid on his back, breathing rapidly as blood flowed out of him, a scowl mixed with both anger and pain plastered on his bloody face. Ino sat over him, her palms glowing and trembling as she attempted to ease his pain.

"What should I do?" the lavender haired girl thought. Her stance was off a little as she trembled from the man in front of her. If she just gave the man their few supplies, then he would leave them alone; allegedly. If she stood to fight him, she could end up in a much worse condition than Kiba, then he'd take their sparse equipment either way.

"Hey Violet," the bandit said, snapping Hinata out of her trance, "It's your move."

Hinata tightened her stance and put on a brave front. "I-I'll stop you." she stammered as she got into position. Just as quickly as the words left her mouth, she regretted them.

Yamcha smirked. "Bad choice." The desert man rushed at H inata and punched twice, and was surprised as she ducked out of the way. She returned with a leg sweep, but Yamcha jumped over it but had to dodge quickly as she retaliated with pointed strikes. She continued to strike at him, yet he effortlessly dodged each strike.

Hinata knew that her strikes were uncoordinated. The fear of her friends getting harmed was too great. She aimed to hit his shoulder, but he nimbly twisted his body and slapped her in the back of her head, causing the girl to fall forward with a small shriek. She quickly caught herself, however and rolled onto her knees whilst raising her arms to block an oncoming punch. Hinata was gritting her teeth, while the bandit displayed a confident smile.

He shook his head at the girl. "I know who you are." That simple statement caused fear to rush through Hinata. "Hinata Hyuga, heir of the Hyuga clan. Eldest daughter of Hiashi. You know, you're worth a whole wad of zeni, hell enough to retire in five lifetimes." His smile became more animistic as he felt the girls guard loosening. "If I turn you in, I wouldn't have to steal anymore." He lifted his knee into the girls abdomen, resulting in a shriek, as well as sending her back a few meters.

Ino let loose a stifled cry as she watched her teammate get hurt. As much as she wanted to help Hinata, she knew that if she stopped healing Kiba he could die on the spot. Kiba was losing consciousness quickly, but she had to keep him alive, at least until Kurenai got back. "Hinata... be strong..." she whispered as a tear fell down her face.

Yamcha rushed Hinata and kicked her in her right side, halting her momentum, then swung a barrage of strikes at her chest and face. Hinata attempted to hit Yamcha in the chest, but he raised his knee to hit her wrist causing her to scream out in pain. Kiba jolted awake with widened eyes, screaming his teammates name as he saw her. Yamcha looked in his direction, giving Hinata enough time to land a strike on his right shoulder, which immediately caused it to fall lifelessly beside him.

"Argh!" Yamcha grunted out as he swung with his left hand, hitting harder than he expected. Hinata let out a whimper as she tumbled on the rough sand, adding more scratches to her already battered face and clothing.

"Dammit!" Yamcha yelled as his cat quickly flew to his side.

"Are you okay Yamcha?" it asked with worry on it's face.

"I'm fine!" Yamcha said as he cradled his arm. "I just have to finish this sooner than later."

Hinata stared at the man wide eyed as she attempted to stand, however it was usuccessful. Tears quickly clouded her vision as she shivered. Her breathing accelerated. Would he really take her? If he wanted to, there was nothing she could do to stop it, considering he outclassed her in all ways of combat. She knew that her eyes were valued in the Shinobi world, and other villages would pay plenty for them. What if they kidnapped her and bred her? What if they killed her and medically transferred her eyes? The possibilities were endless and she couldn't think of any scenario ending in a good way.

"Hinata, run!"

Hearing Kiba's voice jolted the girl out of her trance. She jumped back weakly and dodged a punch that would've easily incapacitated her. She gripped her stomach as pain rushed through her. If only she wasn't such a failure, she could've performed some of the high ranking clan jutsu's.

Yamcha looked at the crouched girl with a frown. He wasn't a kidnaper, merely a bandit. He couldn't pass up on this opportunity, however. He took slow steps towards the girl and was surprised as he saw her get into a stance. "I admire your guts, but you know that you're outclassed." The girl took a step back. "This can all be avoided-" Yamcha dodged a slow punch, "if you just-" he batted a forward palm strike away, "stop fighting." Yamcha finished as he gripped her wrist.

Hinata struggled to wrench her arm free, but to no avail as the mans grip was strong. She frantically attempted to attack with her free hand, but Yamcha lifted his knee and struck her wrist, resulting in another scream. Hinata's Byakugan was released, with most of her chakra gone.

"Ino... do something!" Kiba grunted from his spot on the ground.

"But if I do..." she started but was cut off.

"Let me die!" he said to her, causing her to flinch slightly.

Ino looked from Kiba to Hinata. Hinata looked to be dazed, her eyes were droopy, yet she still was trying to wrestle free. She shakily lifted her hands and connected her thumbs and index and middle fingers together. She tried to aim on Yamcha, but her aim was too shaky. She looked back at Kiba. "I can't do it!" she yelled with anger in her voice.

Kiba growled in annoyance as he tried to sit up. "I have to try something," he let lose a loud roar as his body screamed in protest. He laid himself back down as he coughed up blood.

Hinata had already given up on escaping. With her one good wrist broken, there was no way that she could escape this bandit. She closed her eyes and let a tear fall. As she silently cried, only one thing was on her mind. "Naruto..." she whispered to herself.

"Let her go!" Hinata's eyes jolted open as she heard an all too familiar voice. Was she hallucinating? As she saw the look in Yamcha's face, she figured she couldn't be. Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye's she saw a flash of orange streak through. Yamcha let out a pained scream as he was punched in the stomach by the blur. Hinata smiled and blushed as her savior caught her before she hit the ground. She looked into her crush's face and couldn't help but blush. This was her dream! Being saved by her orange clad, spiky black haired muscular frie- wait. Spiky black hair? As Hinata's blurry vision focused, she realized that it wasn't Naruto holding her, but another boy, another handsome one at that. He was smiling at her really wide, and she couldn't help but notice his shiny teeth.

"Good hit, Goku!" Hinata looked toward the familiar voice and saw Naruto running towards them. This caused her to blush even further as she realized she was being held by another. Hinata fainted in Goku's arms.

Goku giggled. "Hehehe, I think he fell asleep!" he said as he looked at the figure in his arms.

"It's a girl you moron!" Naruto yelled as he got near the two. He easily sped past Bulma on her motor vehicle. "Hey, it's Hinata!" he yelled as he saw the girl in Goku's arms. His face became a grim expression as he looked at her bruises. He looked around him. "And there's Kiba, Ino, and Akamaru!" Kiba looked away from the punk that beat him in the preliminaries. Ino smiled wide and waved as she yelled Naruto's name. Yamcha started coughing as he stood to his feet. Naruto looked back at the black haired man and a scowl came onto his face. "Did he do this to her?" he asked in a low tone.

Yamcha grit his teeth as he stared at the two newcomers. The punch that was delivered to him was unreal, stronger than anything he ever had to deal with. He needed an escape plan, and fast considering his arm was out of use.

"You kids think you want some of this?" Yamcha asked, trying to intimidate the duo.

Goku's eyes widened. "Some what? Do you have candy? Yes, I would like some! Pleeeeeeease!" he begged with an innocent expression. This caused everyone around him to sweat drop.

Naruto looked at Goku and shook his head. "Goku, let me handle this." he said in a low growl.

Goku looked from his new friend and back to the bandit. "OK!" he said as he jumped back and landed next to Ino and Kiba. He gave them one of his prized grins. "Hi, I'm Goku!" he said to the two.

Ino looked at Goku with a raised brow. Hmm_ he's cute!_ She thought as she introduced herself. Kiba ignored him, choosing to rather stare at Naruto than to acknowledge the new kid.

Yamcha looked down at the little boy and a thought appeared in his head. He ignored the scowl that the blonde was giving him, and replied with a simple smirk. He couldn't help but giggle as the boy started stomping and pointing at him.

"What are you smirking at?" Naruto asked. "Learn to respect the Hokage when he approaches you!"

"Hokage?" Yamcha asked with a chuckle. "There's no way a brat like you could take that position. I mean, look at you," Yamcha waved his good hand at the boy, "you're malnourished. And your

outfit isn't exactly what I'd call ninja worthy. And on top of all that, you have freaking whiskers kid! I'm a wolf, I'd eat you alive." Yamcha licked his lips to emphasize his point.

"Shut up!" Naruto yelled as he rushed the man. Yamcha smiled, easily kicking out his foot and kicking the Jinchuuriki in the gut. Naruto skid back a few feet as the wind was knocked out of him. He fell to one knee and inhaled rapidly, but was quickly kneed in the jaw which sent him into the air. He landed on the ground with a thud, sprawled out on his back.

"Whoa man, I was actually a little worried!" Yamcha said as he laughed heartily. "I can beat you with my arm tied behind my back!" Yamcha briefly thought of his choice of words, realizing that he really did only have one arm. He watched as the kid dubbed Naruto stood to his feet shakily. "You should've let monkey boy over there fight, you are much weaker than that mutt and his pup. Hell, even the girl put up more of a fight than you!"

"Shut up!" Naruto yelled more shakily this time. He crossed his fingers into his signature jutsu and six clones surrounded him. "Let's see how you handle all of us!"

Yamcha smirked, not showing any hints of fear. None of the clones even had a fighting stance! They all stood in uncoordinated positions, showing a complete lack of fighting skills.

"Bring it," he said, and quickly jumped up to avoid a clone that hastily charged. Yamcha kicked the clone in he back of his head, causing him to quickly dispel. Two more followed suit, and Yamcha withdrew his sword and a side swipe quickly ended their short life. The remaining four Naruto's each grabbed a kunai and blindly rushed the bandit.

"I'll play with you for a little while," Yamcha said as he gripped his blade even harder. He parried an onslaught of sloppy attacks from the four blondes, even smiling as he did it. He was twisting back and forth as he blocked the attacks, not even feeling the need to go on the offensive. Naruto noticed this, and in the middle of a high swing decided to announce it.

"Stop playing with me!" he yelled as his blade met Yamcha's. Yamcha jumped away from the group of clones, and wasn't surprised in the least as they all decided to follow. He looked into the sky. "Now Puar!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

Naruto followed his gaze and was surprised to see a large object with wings swoop low, forcing him to duck. Yamcha jumped up and landed on top of it, smirking as he looked back at the battered group.

"Get back here you wimp!" Naruto yelled with throwing his kunai at the object, yet they all missed.

"See you later" Yamcha yelled in response. It was then that he noticed a beautiful girl amongst them. His face changed into a dumb look, and he quickly turned back forward. "Faster, Puar, faster!" he yelled as his partner sped off.

Naruto dispelled his clones and ran back to his allies. He smiled goofily in triumph as he approached the group. He saw that Ino was applying her healing to a still unconscious Hinata, while Goku was talking to her and watching her hands glow in glee. Kiba was sitting up looking better, giving Bulma the creepiest smile he's ever seen. On his lap was Akamaru, whom was getting plenty attention from Bulma, although she absolutely refused to pet him. "Hey guys!" he yelled as h e approached.

"Hey, look at the dead last!" Kiba said in a mocking term. He smirked at Bulma as he said this, hoping for a reaction. He instead got a reaction from Naruto.

"If I'm the dead last, where does that put you? Considering I beat you in the exams and what not," he trailed off as he smirked at the pup.

Kiba choked up, not expecting Naruto to react so quickly to his comment. The girls all giggled at him, while Akamaru growled, remembering that he also lost in the fight.

"You only won because of your stink butt!" Kiba yelled as he looked away form Naruto.

"Yea yea, either way I won! I must be getting much stronger! Did you see how that guy was running from me? He was all like 'man you're too strong for me' and I was like 'yea I know' and he was all like-"

"Naruto?" Naruto froze as he heard his name called. He turned around and saw the beautiful face of Kurenai Sensei. He smiled as he saw her, she was one of the people in the village that didn't treat him like trash.

"Hey Sensei!" he yelled goofily as he waved at her. She quickly approached them , and burst into a sprint as she saw the state that her students were in.

"What happened?" she demanded in a panicked voice. She ran to Hinata's side and put her hand on her head. She nervously looked between her students as she listened to them relay the story to her. Her face went from fear of the bandit harming them, to proud of Hinata and Kiba standing up to him, to surprise at the kid named Goku's speed and strength. As they finished the story, she was standing beside Kiba.

Kurenai sighed. She knew that her next decision was most likely to get her more fire than help, but she needed to get Hinata medical attention immediately. If her students were to get hurt, she'd never forgive herself.

"Guys, I'm ashamed to say this, but we have to go get help as fast as we can." Kurenai said solemnly.

"Where are you suggesting?" Ino asked as she twirled a finger in her hair.

Kurenai deeply inhaled, then slowly let it out. "Orange Star City."


	6. Chapter 6

Homecoming

Walking towards the hospital of Orange Star City was a mother and child. The mother was dressed in a doctor's coat, she was the head doctor at the hospital. She had long curly dark blue hair and blue eyes. She was rather tall, but her beauty was unrivaled in the city.

"Mom, I don't want to be a doctor! I'm going to be a world known martial artist, not some stupid pencil pusher!" he yelled as he waved his fist in the air. The young boy was small for his age, standing under five feet. His hair was cut short and black. He wore a beige training gi and black boots. His jet black eyes were always full of dreams, dreams bigger than most people's imagination. He smirked as he crossed his arms across his chest. "We'll be an amazing combo, I'll beat the crap out of them, then you- AH! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" the boy yelled as he grabbed his nose, which he received a slap to moments before.

"Watch your mouth!" his mom yelled with a dangerous tone, one that he knew meant that he was in trouble. "I don't care how strong you get, you will respect me, Mark!" she yelled at him.

"Yes ma'am," Mark whined as he failed to hold back tears. His mom stared at him for a long few seconds, and then smiled and pinched his cheek.

"It's only because I love you, sweety," she said as she released a giggle. She stood up and straightened her hair. "Come now," she said as she continued walking.

Mark followed his mom while still sniffling and rubbing his nose. He silently followed her, while dreaming of the great fight's he would have. He could already see himself winning numerous Tenkaichi tournaments, and all by a long shot. He would be the great defender of earth from any evils that approach. The world famous fighter, Mark the Martial Artist! Mark scratched his chin with a slight grin. He really needed to work on a cool name to go by, in order to install fear in his opponent's.

"Oof!" Mark grunted as he ran face first into his mother's butt. He backed away and furiously wiped his face. "What the heck mo-Augh!" Mark flinched as he was punched on the top of the head.

"I told you to watch your tone, Marky!" his mom said while sternly glaring at him. Mark cowered in fear of the fire in her eyes. He was relieved as she looked away and stared at the city's entrance. "Do you sense that Mark?" she asked with curiosity

Mark rubbed his head as he opened his senses. His mom taught him how to sense chakra as a young boy, in order to avoid the bullies that tend to gang up on him. After a few second's, Mark got irritated.

"Mom, are you yanking my chain?" he asked with annoyance. "I don't -" Mark halted as he sensed figures approaching. He could tell that they weren't native to the city, their chakra all seemed to be trained. One of them seemed eerily familiar.

"Let's go to the hospital, they'll be coming soon," the mother said as she continued her trek to work. Mark looked between her and the direction that the figures were approaching. He quickly ran to catch up with his mother.

As the two walked into the hospital, the mother looked at her brown skinned attendant. "There's some people coming here in a few seconds. Send them to me instantly." she said as she quickly walked to her operating room.

"Yes ma'am," The attendant said as she hung up the phone. "Hey Mark," she said in a soft tone as she saw the boy. Mark waved at her with a blush as he took a seat. He wanted to see the newcomers as soon as they walked into the building.

The attendant picked the phone back up and continued her conversation. Mark rolled his eye's as he realized she was talking about some guy named Quentin. He actually thought she liked him, but he see's that was bull.

Out of the corner of her eyes, the attendant noticed people approaching the door to the hospital quickly. Actually, beyond quickly. Immediately as she saw them, the door burst open entered a long raven haired beauty.

"Hurry, these kids need immediate treatment!" a tall lady yelled as she burst into the large hospital of Orange Star City. Mark stared at her with his jaw hanging to the ground. She was beautiful, her long silky black hair was exotic and her red and black eyes were beyond beautiful. Behind her rushed in a short chubby boy with black hair, as well as... a tail? That wasn't weird at all. He was carrying a pretty lavender haired girl in his arms with a concerned look on his face. Behind him was a blonde, who wore an orange jacket. He was carrying a boy that looked less than happy, he also had sharp teeth. The last too run in was a blonde with a long ponytail, carrying an injured puppy.

The only adult looked at the receptionist, whom just stared at the group in a face showing both curiousness and surprise. Her face turned into a scowl. "Do you not hear me?" she asked as she banged on the desk, causing both the lady and the object to jump. "I said, NOW!"

"R-right away ma'am!" the lady said with a shaky voice as she ran into the back room. "Follow me!" she yelled and was quickly trailed by Goku and Naruto, still carrying Hinata and Kiba respectively. Ino quickly ran to catch up to them.

"Where are you going?" Goku asked. "I thought you were going to help her!"

The lady turned towards Goku as she still ran. She noticed the look of concern in his eyes and couldn't help but smile. "We're going to see the best doctor in town. I promise, your friends are going to be OK."

"Alright!" Naruto yelled. "You hear that Kiba? You're going to be fine!"

"Of course I heard, Naruto," Kiba growled. "I'm an Inuzuka for crying out loud."

Back at the reception desk, Kurenai was reading the numerous plaques on the wall. Most were about the great hospital, but she was more interested in the head doctor. She smiled as she read how the doctor saved a young girl that fell down a hill. The damages seemed fatal, but nothing seemed impossible for this doctor.

"Hey, you think being a doctor's cool?" Kurenai turned and noticed the boy sitting in one of the waiting chairs.

"Yes I do," she said with a smirk. "I almost became a nurse once. It was what my mom wanted."

"You too?" Mark said with an exaggerated shout. "My mom always tells me to become a doctor. I want to be the world's greatest martial artist!" he said as he shadow boxed the air.

Kurenai giggled at the kid. "I see, it look's like you're pretty strong." she walked towards the boy and sat by him. "What's you're name?"

"I'm Mark!" the boy yelled as he smiled at her.

"And I'm Kurenai," the Kunoichi said, returning the smile. A questioning look appeared on the boys face.

"Hmm..." he said, scratching his head. "That name rings a bell somewhere..."

"Maybe you heard about me. I'm actually from here, but left to become a ninja."

"A ninja?" Mark yelled as he jumped to his feet. "Can you teach me? Huh? Huh? Canya?" he yelled jumping excitedly up and down. Kurenai couldn't help but smile.

"Of course I can, Mark," she replied.

"Calm down, Mark." Mark instantly stopped jumping up and down. He looked to the hall and saw his mother. She wore a white apron over her usual scrubs, as well as a mask covering her mouth. She was currently pulling on white gloves. "Hello, Kurenai." she said with a hint of amusement in her voice.

Kurenai looked at the doctor and exhaled slowly. This was the one part of the trip that she wanted to avoid. "Hello, Mom."

XxoxX

"Again."

Sasuke grit his teeth. He was trying to keep his patience with his annoying Sensei, but he was losing it by the second. Kakashi was teaching Sasuke his only signature technique. It was coming easily to Sasuke, but the mark on his neck was Hell. It messed with his chakra output and would randomly send painful waves through him.

They were sitting at the usual team 7 training grounds. The area was covered in burn marks and punctures that went a few inches in the ground. A few trees in the surrounding area were punctured as well. The lone training doll, however, was completely bare of any marks.

The doll was only three hundred yards away from him, yet he couldn't land a single hit on it.

Sasuke gripped his right wrist with his left and concentrated. He grunted as he felt the lightning chakra gather in his hand. The sound of thousands of birds echoed through the air as the energy in his hand rose in intensity. He grunted as the weight of the attack increased. He looked up at the doll as he ran full sprint at it. "Chidori!" Sasuke yelled as his sharingan was activated.

"You're weak." Sasuke flinched as he heard the voice. He looked ahead and saw Itachi staring him down. The red eyes of his brother stared at him as if he were being analyzed. Sasuke growled at the man, the one he was destined to kill.

"Shut up!" he yelled as he thrust the chidori forward. He smiled with satisfaction as he hit his mark head on. Sasuke watched as Itachi's eyes slowly moved down and stared into his. "Weak." he said again as he disappeared.

"Good job," Sasuke looked towards Kakashi and saw the Jonin still looking in his book. Sasuke looked back toward Itachi and saw that his hand was in the chest of the doll. "However," Sasuke looked back towards his sensei, " Most targets will be moving want you to hit your target fifteen times consecutively, and then we would be on to the next step." Sasuke growled at Kakashi as he ran back to the starting spot. If Naruto thought he could beat him in the tournament, to Hell with that. He would be sure to come out on top of this entire tournament.

XxxoxxX

"Whoa, so you're really my sister?" Mark said with enthusiasm in his voice. He stared into Kurenai's eyes with admiration.

"Yea, I guess so," Kurenai said as she scratched the back of her head. This was news to her as well.

Naruto jumped up and down as he stared at the lady.

"That's so cool, Sensei!" he said as he looked between the two siblings. "I wish I had a brother!"

"What's a brother?" Goku asked as he looked on at the situation. Mark looked at hi with a confused expression.

"You really are stupid, huh?" Mark said with a sweat drop.

"Be nice!" Ino said as she glared at Mark. Mark was stuck from he beauty, so he didn't retaliate. She looked towards Goku with a smile. "A brother is someone that has the same parents as you."

"Oh," Goku said. Everyone in the room sat silently as he held a finger to his mouth. "What's a parent?" Everyone in the room fell anime style at the boy's question.

"A parent is the person that gave birth to you!" Mark yelled with frustration as he crawled to his feet. "Shouldn't that be apparent?"

"Oh," Goku replied. "I don't have a brother."

"Don't worry, me either." Naruto said with a solemn expression. Kurenai looked at littler Goku with interest.

"Hey Goku," she said to the boy, whom looked at her. 

"Yea?" he answered.

"Why do you have a tail?"

Everyone turned their attention towards Goku. He looked at Kurenai with a blank face. As if on cue, his tail wiggled.

"I don't know, my grandpa said all boys have them." Goku said with a calm voice.

"He's gotta be kidding me..." Ino said as she rubbed her palms. For such a cute boy, he really was dense!

"I don't have a tail!" Mark said as he jumped to his feet and pointed at the young boy. "You must be some kinda freak or something!"

"Mark!" The boy froze as he heard the familiar voice call his name. He slowly turned and looked into the angered eyes of his mom. The boys face was drained of color as he looked into the fiery eyes of his mother.

"M-mom..." Mark stammered as she quickly started walking towards him. "I wasn't calling him a freak, I promise-OW!" Mark yelled as he was punched on the top of the head. This caused Goku to snicker, and Ino and Kurenai to look away.

"Watch your language!" she yelled as she hit him again.

"Yes ma'am!" Mark yelled as he rubbed his sore head.

"I see that you haven't changed a bit..."Kurenai said to her mother. The elder lady smiled as she pushed her hair behind her ears.

"Just because I'm older doesn't mean I'll allow my kids to disobey me!" was her stern response.

"Excuse me lady, but how are my friends doing?" asked the hyperactive blonde shinobi.

The older doctor sighed. "Honestly, not too good." Naruto's face fell into a frown. Kurenai's eyes fell to the ground as she listened to the doctor. "The girl's wrist are both broken, as well as one rib. She's extremely low on chakra as well, her reserves aren't that well to begin with." Ino wiped a tear from her eye. "The boy's even worse. He broke three of his ribs, as well as a fracture in the sternum. One of his lungs was scraped, but I healed it before any serious damage could be done. The scratches on his face and body should heal eventually, but one horizontally on his cheek is deep enough to stay, possibly for life." Kurenai squinted her eyes tightly, trying to keep the tears from flowing.

"The dog also suffered from broken ribs, as well as his hip. He is extremely dehydrated from excessive amounts of vomit. It's a good thing you brought them here when you did." The group stared solemnly at the ground. They were full of sadness as they were delivered the news. "which one of you healed the group?" the doctor asked.

"M-me," was Ino's reply. She continued staring at the ground, shaking slightly. She flinched slightly as she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up and saw the doctor smiling into her face.

"You did good." she said while she looked at the young genin. "If it weren't for you, your friends would have died on the battle field." Ino shuddered at the mention of her friends death. A slow smile spread across her face.

"I'm proud of you, Ino," Kurenai said as she smiled at her lovers student. "I'm sure that Asuma would be proud too.

"Thanks," Ino said with a blush and a grin.

"Your friends should be waking up soon. Don't you all want to go and check on them?"

"You bet!" Naruto yelled as he and Goku raced to the back.

"W-wait for me!" Ino said as she trailed behind the two boys.

"Mark, go."

"Yes ma'am!" The young man raced after the young genin.

"Now, onto you." The doctor looked toward Kurenai. Her soft expression hardened as she glared at her daughter. "How the Hell could you let your students get hurt like this?" she yelled with furiousity. "You are their Jonin instructor, so it is your duty to protect them from harm. And not to mention that they were hurt by a missing nin! Imagine if he used a jutsu on them? How would you explain this to their parents? Or do you not think about things like this?" As the conversation went on, the older ladies voice rose.

"I..." Kurenai was at a loss of words. Everything her mother said was true, and it hurt her to admit it. She shouldnt've left her students, her job is to stick with them at all times! How could she let them get hurt to that extent? What would Asuma think of her?

"Oh, you don't have anything to say?" Her mother shook her head slowly as she looked at Kurenai. "Your just like your father."

Kurenai tensed at this response. She knew the reason her father and mother separated. Her mother accused her dad of cheating and kicked him to the curb. Kurenai decided to stay with her father and moved to the elemental countries with her father.

"Where is the cheating bastard anyway?" her mom asked with disdain in her voice.

"He's dead..." Kurenai harshly whispered. The air between the two women tensed. Kurenai wanted nothing more than to disappear at moment, but she knew that would warrant another argument from her mother.

"Kurenai, I-"

Suddenly, a large explosion could be heard coming from the town. Both ladies rushed outside, and were met by Goku's blue haired companion.

"What's going on?" Kurenai demanded.

"Oh my gosh!" Bulma yelled as she breathed quickly. Behind her, many townspeople ran around the city. "There's this guy riding on a brown bird! He blows things up, and that's not the scariest part. He has mouth's on his hands!"

The door behind the women opened and exited Goku, Naruto, Ino, and Mark. "What's going on?" Naruto asked.

"That!" Kurenai yelled as she threw kunai at incoming clay birds, causing a chain of explosions. As the explosions died down, there stood a man with long blonde hair. He smiled at the group with a widening expression.

"You, Nine tailed kid," the man said as he licked his lips. Naruto glared at the man. "You're going down, and in a bang."


	7. Sand Bombs! The Corruption of Evil!

Sand Bombs

XxxoxxX

Master Roshi and Jiraiya were sitting on top of a disgruntled Gambunta. Every few seconds he would grumble in annoyance at the two perverts sat atop his head. The sun was slowly setting, leaving the sky painted a hue of orange.

"How do I look?" the turtle hermit asked as he straightened out his shirt. He was wearing his usual clothes, the only difference being that he wore a straw hat.

"You look great!" Jiraiya said as he smiled at the older man. "The ladies at the party are gonna love you, I promise!"

Roshi grinned. "That's great, I've been really practicing my moves ya know!" he began waving his stick in the air and rotating his neck, or as he would like to call it, dancing.

"Ha ha maybe you should work on that some more. The ladies will be all over us, we are two of the most powerful beings on this planet, of course." Jiraiya couldn't help but grin. He wasn't sure about his master, but he knew that he was going to get lucky tonight. He always got lucky. A few shots and boasting about his achievements were more than enough to get the girls riled up.

"Hey Jiraiya, if you get me laid tonight I promise to teach you," a flash could be seen on his shades, "_That_ technique."

Jiraiya looked at the old master with widened eyes. "Are you serious?" he asked. "That would make me, like, twenty times stronger!"

Roshi nodded. "Hey, when you're as old as me you have to leave something behind. You and Gohan were the closest things to kids I have left, think of it as passing the torch.

Jiraiya wasn't paying attention to anything that Roshi was saying. He was deep in thought, thinking about the power boost. _If I get that power, maybe I can bring _him_ back_ he thought as he stared off into space.

"Hey, Gambunta!" Roshi said as he tapped the great toad on the head.

Gambunta growled. "You old bat better show some respect! You're lucky I'm even letting you on my head, you ungrateful old geezer."

"Blah blah, how long until we reach our destination? Your rough skin is really irritating my dogs!" as he said that, he wiggled his toes for emphasis.

A large vein appeared on the toad's head. "I could care less about your damn dogs! You sit back and wait until we stop! Believe me, I'm not enjoying this any more than you are!"

"OK OK, don't lose a wart, it was only a question." Roshi laid on the toads head and looked to the stars. "Hey Jiraiya, when's the last time you've been to West City?"

"A couple of weeks ago. I passed through there on my way to do some research." his face became one of goofy lust. "And my oh my I enjoyed my findings."

"Really?" Roshi asked with excitement.

"Yes sir! Everyone there is always full of energy. Hell, they're so energetic, they just may all explode one of these days."

"Hmm... I'm enjoying the sound of this!" Roshi said with a grin. The men sat in silence for a few seconds, ignoring the angry mumble of their carriage.

"I wonder what Naruto's doing right now," Jiraiya asked as he continued staring out.

"I wonder how my cloud's doin'." Roshi said.

"Oh well, as long as the Kyuubi doesn't release we'll all be-" Jiraiya's eyes widened. He'd forgotten all about the Kyuubi! How could he let the boy run rampant without putting a stronger restraint on his seal!

"Relax, the beast isn't out," Roshi calmly stated. "You of all people should know that I'd be able to sense it."

Jiraiya hung his head. "You're right," he said. "But after tonight, we go and find the kids. "Deal?"

"Yeah yeah, whatever," Roshi responded.

"Well I won't be your transportation, you saggy skinned bastards," grumbled an angry Gambunta.

XxxoxxX

Kurenai gripped a kunai as she slowly approached the figure. His hair was held in a long ponytail, which she had to admit complimented his one visible blue eye pretty well. He wore a black cloak with red clouds decorated on it. The robe was too big and hung loosely off of his frame. On his head was an Iwa forehead protector with a slash going through it.

The boy didn't look familiar at all. She checked her bingo books daily, and she didn't recognize him. Considering the damage he did to the city, it was no denying the fact that he wasn't to be toyed with.

"Naruto, Ino, Goku. Go and get the villagers to safety." As she spoke, her eyes never left the Shinobi, whom kept smiling at her. She couldn't see his hands since they were tucked in his cloak, but she could see them moving.

Naruto and Goku quickly ran to her side. "Are you crazy?" Naruto yelled while he grabbed a kunai. Goku swiftly held his power pole as he stared the guy down. "We came here as a team, and I never back down from a fight! And besides, he's barely older than me."

Deidara pointed at Naruto with pure fury. "Don't compare me to you, you little brat! My skill surpasses yours by light years, hm!"

Naruto pointed back at his fellow blonde teen. "As if! I'm going to be the Hokage someday, and I damn sure won't be stopped by you! Believe it!"

"Don't be foolish, boy." Naruto looked behind him and glared at the doctor. She passively looked back at the genin.

"Hey, Old Hag! I don't take orders from you-"

"He's a B ranked missing ninja, he goes by Deidara." At the mention of this, Naruto's eyes widened with realization. He looked back at the shinobi and grit his teeth while shaking slightly. "You're a genin whose barely had any experience, he'd wipe the floor with you."

Goku looked from the Shinobi, to Kurenai, and back towards the Shinobi. "Hey, I found him!" he said with a wide smile, causing everyone (including Deidara) to fall anime style.

Mark was the first to his feet. "You idiot, that doesn't mean he's missing! That means he betrayed his village and is really dangerous!"

"Oh," Goku said with a finger on his lip. He looked at Naruto and Ino. "Are you ready?" he asked as he returned his pole to his back.

"Y-yea," Ino said nervously. Her heart was pumping as she looked a the smirking nin. Terror had her body shaking, but she wasn't going to make it known to her allies.

"You bet!" Naruto yelled as he took off into the city.

"Hehee no fair Naruto!" Goku yelled as he ran behind his friend. Ino silently followed the duo. Kurenai watched on as they disappeared into the city.

"Wait for me!" Mark yelled as he prepared to run after them.

"Mark." Mark froze and turned towards his mom. "Go and watch over the patients.

Mark looked back at his mother with tears in his eyes. "But moooom!"

"Is that sass?" she responded as she turned and glared at her son.

"N-no ma'am!" Mark responded as he turned and ran back into the hospital, wiping the tears that were flowing down his face.

Deidara released a loud groan. "Did you guys forget I was here or something?" he asked the startled woman. "First, you give kids orders to run past me, and the you just talk like I'm not here. You really have a death wish, hm" As he spoke he slowly withdrew his hands from his cloak. Kurenai lowered herself into a defensive position, as her mother did the same. "I really could care less about you too, but the intense level of disrespect is the reason you must die, hm!" Mouth's on each of the boy's palms began smacking in unison. The ladies looked at it disgustingly, but were surprised as it began shooting out small clay birds.

"Dodge them!" Kurenai yelled as she threw kunai to intercept the projectiles. The birds exploded on contact, causing a large cloud of smoke to cloud their vision. The woman both covered their face with their arms to not inhale the dust.

"Look out!" the women quickly jumped out of the way as a large bird came flying out of the dust. On top of the bird was Deidara, grinning at the two. He raised his left palm and released a wave of grass hoppers that quickly began hopping towards the two.

"Shit!" Kurenai cursed silently as she jumped in front of her mother while going through seals. "fire Style: Flame Wheel Jutsu!" Kurenai blew out fire, which shaped itself into a rapidly spinning wheel. The wheel shot out at a rapid pace, and quickly cut into the oncoming clay bugs. The jutsu continued to fly towards Deidara, whom looked over his shoulder lazily at it.

"Who do you think I am, hm?" he yelled with a smile. He quickly turned towards the direction of the wheel and rushed towards it.

Kurenai grunted. This boy must be suicidal if he was going to collide head on with her jutsu. The boy jumped off of his bird and it collided head on, resulting in a large explosion.

The two woman covered there faces but couldn't stop the smoke from getting into their lungs, resulting in a deep cough from them.

"Mom, are you OK?" Kurenai asked between coughs.

"I'm fine!" the doctor replied. "Where's the kid?"

"He's," Kurenai looked around, but couldn't see the young one anywhere, "gone." Kurenai's eyes widened in realization. "It was a distraction! He just wanted to separate us from the kids!"

"But why?" the mother asked her daughter curiously. "Kurenai, is there something about those kids that you aren't telling me?"

Kurenai looked towards her mother. She opened her mouth and closed it back. She did this several times before looking back towards the city. "We have to get to the children," she said with a stern tone.

"What are you-"

"There's no time!" Kurenai said as she quickly darted towards the destroyed city.

"Not so fast." Kurenai halted as she heard the voice. In front of her a figure appeared. He was slouched over, and wore a similar black jacket as the young teen. His lower face was covered by cloth, and his head had five thick corn rows goin down them.

"Who are you?" Kurenai asked the figure. She didn't have time for this!"

"I am Sasori. I do not intend to kill you, but if you interfere, you must die."

XxoxX

"Come on, this way!"

Goku was running, carrying three dogs in his arms. Ino stood at the edge of the city, directing the villagers toward the entrance. Hundreds of blonde genin were running up and down the village, running into burning buildings saving both adults and children.

"Vincent! Cloud! Xana!"

"Woof woof!" All three dogs barked in unison as they ran towards their human owner. The young boy smiled at Goku.

"Thanks mister!" he said to a smiling Goku.

"No problem," Goku replied with a giggle.

"That's the last of em boss!" a clone said to the real Naruto with a salute.

"Alright, you guys lead these people to the nearest city. There goes the mayor, he should be able to help you."

"Yes sir!" The clone said as he ran towards the mayor.

"Whew, that was exhausting," Ino replied as she slumped onto the ground. She looked in the direction of the retreating villagers and smiled. "It feels good to save lives, though."

"Yea, but now we have to save Kurenai Sensei!" Naruto said. He turned to run towards the hospital, but fell forward.

"Naruto!" Ino yelled, but before he could hit the ground, Goku caught him.

"Are you OK?" Goku asked with extreme concern in his voice.

"I'm OK, really!" Naruto said as he pushed Goku away. He crawled to his feet and flashed a smile, but quickly grimaced again and fell forward onto his knees.

"Naruto, don't push yourself!" Ino yelled as she ran to his side. "You've exhausted your chakra. You have to rest and recover."

"But we have to help sensei! You heard what the hag said, he's an S ranked criminal!"

"So what makes you think you have a chance to stop me?" The trio looked towards the voice and saw their blonde assailant. He was smirking at them, and the burning building behind him made him look that much more menacing.

"There he goes," growled Naruto as he struggled to his feet. "What did you do to sensei?" he demanded, while still wobbling on his feet.

"Watch your tone, punk," Deidara said with a chuckle. "I only need whiskers. The other two of you can go!" Deidara started taking steps towards the trio.

"What are we going to do?" Ino asked. She was shaking on her feet, terrified of the fellow approaching her. Each step that Deidara took felt like a stake being driven into Ino's heart. She couldn't control the tremors going through her body. Her breathing increased to a rapid pace.

"_If this guy killed Kurenai, how can we beat him?" _ she asked herself.

"What's the matter, cutie? You can't be cold, every building around here is on fire!" Deidara said with a laugh. Ino quickly caught herself and tried to calm down, but it didn't work.

"Hey," Ino flinched as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up into the face of Goku and saw him smiling. "You don't have to fight. I can handle him! I promise!"

Ino blushed at the comment given by the short fighter. She smiled and nodded at him.

"H-hey, don't forget about me!" Naruto yelled. He took a step forward as he spoke. He then fell forward, exerting the last of his chakra.

"Ino, get him out of here." Goku said.

Ino panicked. "But Goku, you can't beat him by yourself!" she replied. "You're not eve a genin!"

Goku laughed. "It's OK, I'm really strong!" he replied.

Ino nodded. "OK Goku, we'll be close. In case you need help." Ino whispered, which Goku responded with a nod. She lifted Naruto onto her shoulder and ran into the ruined city.

Deidara laughed, "So, the little monkey boy wants to play hero, hm? I think I have time to entertain him, if just for a moment."

Goku smiled and started doing stretches. "This should be fun!" he commented.

A scowl spread across Deidara's face. "Fun? You take me as a joke?" the missing shinobi yelled as he raised his chomping hands. "Prepare to meet my beautiful art, you piece of trash!"

XxoxX

The streets of Konoha was unbelievably quiet. Most of the Shinobi were either training or on missions. Sakura however was sitting alone at her training field.

After Naruto left, the town seemed to grow quiet. She never knew how much she'd miss the loud mouthed blonde. Although she wouldn't admit it aloud, he was what held their fragile team together. His rivalry with Sasuke kept the Uchiha pushed Sasuke to improve more and more. Their squabbles were always entertaining, and even though Naruto wasn't as good as Sasuke, he was quickly improving .

Ever since Naruto left, Sakura was all alone. Kakashi Sensei and Sasuke were constantly training, and she wasn't allowed to watch. Not to mention the fact that Ino was sent on a top secret mission. Sakura had to admit that she didn't have much friends, she really needed to get out more.

Sakura ran a hand through her tattered hair. Who was she kidding, with this hair she'd be lucky if anyone even spoke to her. Even though Ino cut her hair into a cleaner fashion, she still felt really ugly. Her trademark was her long pink ponytail, and now that was gone.

"Alright guys, that's enough training for today. Same time tomorrow?" Sakura looked up as she heard the voice. She vaguely recognized it, she could only say that he was from this village. She saw three figures entering the training field and recognized them.

The first was a tall man wearing green spandex. His eyebrows were intensely thick, and he sort of reminded her of the genin that asked her on a date, Rock Lee. His name was Might Guy, one of the strongest Shinobi in the Leaf Village.

Directly behind him were the two genin, Tenten and Neji Hyuuga. The latter had an angered look on his face, while Tenten's held concern.

"Yeah, I'm going to check up on Lee." Sakura could hear the remorse in her voice. Their Sensei's eyes went sad at the mention of his protege.

"That's nice," Guy said silently. "I'll be there later, I have something to do first." Guy turned and looked at Neji. "What about you? Are you going to check on your rival?"

Neji snorted at the remark. "He's no rival of mine," he said coldly. Tenten flinched from his comment. Neji clenched his fist. "If he wasn't so weak, he would still be fighting. His destiny was to be destroyed, and that's exactly what happened."

Sakura covered her mouth as she looked towards the Hyuuga. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. They were teammates, how could he be so cold?

Guy suddenly stopped walking, causing his genin to do the same. He stood silent for a few seconds, and then spoke. "Tenten, you and Sakura go check on Lee."

Tenten looked confused. "Sakura? I don't see her-"

Sakura stood up from the tree she was leaning on. "I'm here," she said softly. Tenten looked at her and could see the hurt in her eyes. She nodded as she looked at her Sensei. Before Tenten ran off, she looked over her shoulder at her teammate. His eyes held a stone look, and honestly the look frightened her.

"Let's go!" Tenten said. Her and Sakura ran towards the village together, leaving the Sensei and student together.

The air between the two males seemed to thicken. Neji continued to stare into his sensei's back, getting angrier by the second.

"What do you want?" he demanded. He didn't have time for this, he could be training. It's not like he'd need it, he could beat that Uzumaki kid with little to no effort.

"Neji," Guy said quietly, "Don't let evil consume you." Neji grit his teeth at this "You are a talented shinobi, one of the best this village has seen in a long time. Your value to this village is great, and I wish to watch you blossom into the best that you can be."

"Whatever fate has set in stone for me, it's bound to happen," Neji said through grit teeth.

Guy sighed. He knew that he wasn't going to get anything else out of his student, that was just the type of guy that Neji was. He would, however, try his hardest to keep his student in the village.

"OK, Neji. You are dismissed." Neji nodded and quickly sprinted away. After this speech with his sensei, he really needed to release his anger. He felt bad for the tree that was soon to be the object of his frustration.

Unknown to the two shinobi, there was a figure listening to their conversation. He smiled as he watched the young Hyuuga run off. The boy amused him very much, and he knew that he had to have this talented prospect. "Little Hyuuga, you will soon be mine," he yelled as he ran in the same direction.


	8. Silent Monkey, Roaring Fox

Silent Monkey, Roaring Fox

In the center of a destroyed city stood two young figures. As the sun slowly set on West City, smoke could be seen rising from the destroyed buildings and vehicles. A large group of people could also be seen being escorted away from the village, surrounded by many blondes in orange jumpsuits sporting a headband with the leaf symbol.

The tallest of the two in the city was a blonde. He stood with his palms outstretched towards the smaller boy. His face held a furious snarl as he stared at the younger fighter.

Goku looked at the boy with a wide smile. He was lowered into a stance while holding a red pole in his hands. The boy seemed to not be aware that this battle could very well cost him his life.

This small detail only furthered the anger of his opponent. His face twisted into a feral scowl as he looked at the kid."Hm! You arrogant little prick!" he shouted as he threw two small birds at the boy,

Goku smirked even wider. He watched the birds approach and jumped when they were inches away. The birds flew past Goku as he flipped in the air. While Goku was upside down, he saw the birds returning. The young preteen quickly thrust his pole into the ground, forcing him higher into the air.

Goku twirled and nimbly dodged the birds, he could feel the wind from their rapidly flapping wings on his skin. "Here I go!" he yelled as he cocked the pole back and swung it like a baseball bat. A loud crack could be heard loudly as the pole connected with one of the birds.

Deidara smirked as he looked at the display. "Idiot," he said under his breath as he saw a familiar glow from the bird.

Goku's face changed from a smile to one of curiosity as he watched the bird glow. In a quick burst of light, the bird exploded in a loud bang, resulting in a scream from Goku. He was sent spiraling backwards into a building.

Goku slowly rose out of the rubble, brushing the dust off of him. "Oww, that hurt!" he yelled at the blonde. Deidara's only response was a grin and a point towards the boys direction.

The remaining bird followed suit as it too crashed into the building, causing a similar scream and explosion as before. This resulted in the entire structure collapsing on top of the boy.

Deidara smiled at his handy work, more than excited to see his explosions doing damage. "He won't be getting up from that any time soon!" He said with a small chuckle. "And now, I have a fox to catch!"

XxxoxxX

Neji was breathing hard as he stood in the training facility of the Hyuuga compound. He was completely fatigued as he strained to hold the Byakugan. The single dummy that he was attacking burst into a pile of splinters as if it just realized the damage dealt.

Neji closed his eyes as he fell to the floor. He didn't know why he was training so hard, his match was going to be quick and easy. First training with his over enthusiastic sensei and then doing his own personal regimen was very strenuous on his eyes. Neji had been training non stop since the end of his match with his cousin Hinata Hyuuga.

The teen sucked his teeth at the mention of the girls name. He was full of rage at the pain that his thorough defeat of the heir to his clan brought to him. His mind couldn't help but to wander to his first return after her defeat.

_At the end of the administering of the match ups for the next round, Neji was the first to leave. He was filled with disappointment of his two teammates, they both lost in their matches. _

_Neji was especially upset with Rock Lee. He watched the boy go from a pathetic excuse of a ninja and blossom into one of the greatest taijutsu users that he'd ever encountered, even considering him to be a rival. Now to see him destroyed by a rival ninja village was an insult._

_The boy beat Lee with very little effort. He barely moved out of his standing position, and he even looked bored through most of the fight. Neji was more than sure that he could have defeated the boy without a single problem._

_In a swirl of leaves, a shinobi appeared in the front of Neji. He recognized him as Zuko, one of the branch members of his clan. _

_Zuko was what you would expect from a Hyuga, stern, quiet, and damn near the most unfriendly guy you would want to be around. He had a short haircut and wore a white robe._

"_Neji, you are requested by Hiashi-sama," the messenger said. As Neji nodded as a response, the man disappeared just as quickly as he came._

_A few minutes later and Neji was walking through the compound into the familiar room of Hiashi. He ignored the glares he was given by the Main House members, as well as the looks of grief from the Branch House members. He stoically looked forward as he stood outside of his uncle's room._

"_You may enter, Neji." Neji hesitated for a second, and then pushed open the slides. Inside the room Hiashi was standing facing Neji. His eyes were shut tight and his arms were folded across his chest. Behind Neji stood the Hyuga clan elder._

_Neji quickly knelt in front of his leader. "Did you request me, Hiashi-sama?" he asked with slight annoyance._

_Hiashi looked at Neji with a stern expression. The young prodigy held so much promise, but he was just so hard to deal with. He easily let his emotions control him, and Hiashi was tired of it._

"_Neji, I'm sure you know why you're here," Hiashi said, which caused a visible cringe from Neji._

"_To congratulate me for my spectacular victory?" Neji asked with feigned innocence. Unfortunately for him, his lord could hear it. _

"_Don't act oblivious, Neji!" Hiashi yelled uncharacteristically. His face showed a flash of anger, and a large blast of killer intent was felt throughout the entire compound. "How _dare _you hurt Hinata in such a way, and in front of the entire village no less! Do you have no respect for your superiors?"_

_Neji trembled at the anger Hiashi displayed. His breathing was ragged as he shuddered from the killer intent displayed. He fought with all of his will but he could not stop the shaking._

_Neji flinched as he felt his leaders foot shuffle. He prepared himself for the familiar pain that came from the cursed mark being released. He realized that the pain never came._

"_Get up." Neji glanced towards his uncle and was shocked to see him in the gentle fist formation. "Attack me," was the low order given by the leader._

_Neji looked at Hiashi with wide eyes. He was being ordered to directly attack the leader of their clan! As much as he wanted this opportunity at one point in his life, even minutes ago, he was completely frightened by the man now. _

"_I-I can't Hiashi-sama," he said with a quiver in his voice._

"_Do you dare deny an order from me, Neji? Did your victory from my weak daughter delude you in to believing that you are better than us?" Hiashi yelled as he took a step towards the scared boy. After a few second of silence, Hiashi stomped his foot. "I said _GET UP!_" he yelled._

_The genin scrambled to his feet; he shakily moved into the gentle fist form. Neji gulped as he moved into the gentle fist stance. He stared into his opponents eye and was shaken even further._

_Hiashi's glare intensified. "Well, attack me! Just like you did my seed." As he saw Neji's reluctance, he decided to push him even further. "What kind of prodigy are you? A real prodigy would always take the chance to best his superior."_

_Neji glared at his uncle ; the man was right. Neji waited a long time to be able to beat this man. The man that branded him. The man that forced him into the life of a servant._

_The man that killed his father._

_Neji's resolve strengthened as he looked towards the older Hyuga; his Byakugan activated subconsciously. He released a low growl as he charged at the older man._

_He wished he didn't._

_As Neji swung forward, he saw Hiashi move in seemingly slow motion. "Two palms!" He was quickly caught in the gut with two quick palm strikes, resulting in him releasing a scream. Neji coughed up spit from the impact of the attack. "Four palms!"Before Neji could hit the ground he was quickly attacked, causing him to choke on his spit. He could vaguely taste vomit on his tongue._

"_Eight palms!" Neji's feet finally hit the ground, yet he regretted it. His body was being knocked back, being hit rapidly was causing him a great amount of pain. "Sixteen palms!" Neji could feel his consciousness slipping away, only to be woken back up by more strikes. His knees could barely hold him up._

"_Thirty two palms!" The screams of the young genin could be heard from miles out. Neji's body felt like jelly. He was unable to access his chakra, or even feel anything. As the last hit landed to him, he flew back a couple of feet and landed hard on the wooden floor._

_As Hiashi finished, he looked down at the pained boy. He was shocked to see Neji still awake after the assault. The one thing that caught his attention was his eyes._

_Neji's eyes were lit by an invisible fire. As he lay on the ground, he continued to glare with his last bit of strength. Blood and vomit stained his teeth, and his breathing was labored._

"_Should I take him to the infirmary?" the elder asked with a concerned look on his face. He could see the boy fighting to maintain his consciousness_

"_No," Hiashi held his hand into a single seal that Neji knew well. His eye's widened in fear before the pain attacked him._

"_GGGGAAAAAAAAURRRRRGGGHHHH!" The previous attack that the elder sent toward Neji was nothing; he would redo that pain tenfold instead of dealing with this pain. He could feel burning in his skin, and his head felt like it was being assaulted by hundreds of Uchiha fireballs at once. As much as Neji wanted to grip his head, he couldn't move his body at all. The boy's screams echoed loudly throughout the village._

_After thirty seconds of agonizing pain, Hiashi finally released the seal. Neji quickly fell into a deep slumber, obviously fatigued from his injuries._

_Hiashi stepped towards the exit. "Now you can get him medical treatment," he said as he walked out of the room._

Neji groaned in pain and frustration. It has been over a week since his encounter with Hiashi and he still wasn't over it. All he could do was wonder why did fate seem to be against him.

No matter how strong Neji got, he would always be a servant. He was fated for this life, just as his father before him. Hell, his children were destined for the same treatment.

Neji exhaled, he could feel his body tensing up. He looked to the window as he heard a bird singing. He looked at the small creature, imagining if he was free like the creature. The further the bird got away from the compound, the angrier that he became.

"I can free you."

Neji quickly jumped to his feet and activated his Byakugan. He stared down his assailant. There was a man, he looked to be around forty years old. The man wore pink long coat with the kanji for kill on the front. Right on top of his heart. He had small beady eyes, a pointy nose, a small thin mustache, and a long black ponytail. The man's face held a confident smirk.

"Who the Hell are you?" Neji demanded. He was surprised when the man began chuckling.

"Neji Hyuga, prodigy of the Hyuga clan." Neji's eyes narrowed as the man began speaking with a high pitched voice. "A member of Team Guy, teammates Rock Lee and Tenten. Son of Hizashi Hyuga. Must I go on?"

Neji stared at the man with a glare. "That still doesn't tell me who you are!" he growled. A thought then came into his head. "And how the hell did you get past the guards?"

"Ah ah ah!" the man said as he wagged a finger in the air. "I have one question and one question only. I know your condition. I know the feeling of being caged, being someone's servant. Do you want to know the difference between me and you?" Neji looked at the man with slight interest. "I freed myself!" he hissed.

"What are you talking about?" Neji asked through grit teeth. He was curious to know exactly what the man was speaking about.

The man turned around and looked over his shoulder. "I can show you power, a way to get out of this Hell you call life. When you are prepared to get stronger, you will find me."

As the man finished his story, he jumped out of the window. While standing on the windowsill, he glanced back and smiled at Neji. "You _will _find me." he said as he did the unexpected.

He flew away.

Neji's face showed shock, something that was rare for the Hyuga. His mind raced as he thought about the man that recently left.

Who was he? How did he know so much about him? And why did he seem so damn familiar?

And more importantly, how the Hell could he fly?

Neji figured that he was finished training for the day. For now he was going to rest and think things over. The more he thought about the man, there was only one thought on his mind.

His freedom.

XxoxX

"This is soooo boring!" a disgruntled Mark yelled as he sat beside Kiba's bed. He was beyond aggravated. He had to sit and babysit two stupid humans, as well as a vomit scented pup while Naruto and Goku were out playing hero. How was he supposed to show the world his ultimate moves if he was reduced to this?

"Shut it, shrimp," Kiba said, "you aren't trained to combat shinobi, you'd only get in the way." he looked down at his bandaged body. "If only I wasn't blind sided by that bandit I'd be out there too!"

"Don't talk to me like that, pup! I could kick your ass!" Mark yelled while pointing at Kiba.

This irritated Kiba, and he growled low. "Watch your mouth, you're nothing more than a kitten trying to play with the big dogs."

As the boys argued, they didn't hear Hinata stirring. She slowly opened her eyes and tried to sit up. Akamaru barked to catch Kiba's attention.

"Hinata! I'm sorry, did we awake you?" he asked. Although the boy was usually a hot head, he stayed calm around Hinata. He hated to upset the shy girl.

"K-kiba?" she said weakly. Hinata raised a shaking hand and saw that it was bandaged. "What happened?"

Kiba opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Mark jumping in front of Hinata. "Hey there, pretty girl! I'm Mark, and I saved you all from the big bad bandit! He thought that he was tough, but I showed him the moves I learned from watching Bulk Bogan and I totally domin-oof!" Mark went crashing to the ground as Kiba punched him on the top of the head, causing a large knot to appear.

"Don't you lie to her, you peace of trash shinobi wanna be!" he yelled angrily. "You didn't save us! I'd rather accept being saved by that loser Naruto than you-"

"Naruto?" Hinata said in a surprisingly loud voice as she sprung to a sitting position. She remembered being saved by a person, she just didn't think that it was him. "Where is he?"

Kiba smirked. Even when Hinata was beat up, she still worried about her crush. "Apparently he's out there fighting some B ranked ninja." As Kiba saw the startled look in Hinata's eyes, he quickly continued. "Relax, he's with Kurenai-sensei." this caused Hinata to calm down, just a bit.

Hinata looked at her body, just realizing the extent of the damage. Her hands were bandaged heavily and her chest area was as well. She was scared for the safety of her friend, and was sad that she couldn't help him.

Mark crawled to his feet, still a bit groggy from the attack on his head. "So, this Naruto guy... is he your boyfriend?"

Hinata's eyes widened and her face turned a bright shade of red. "M-my... my b-b-b-boyfriend" she said as the heat in her face intensified.

"Here we go," said Kiba nonchalantly as he watched Hinata faint into the bed.

As if on cue, Bulma walked into the room. She walked right over to Mark.

"what happened to you?" she said as she pointed to the mark on his head.

"I fell," he said with a look of disappointment on his face.

"Yeah, onto my fist," Kiba said as he went back onto his bed.

"Anyways, I have a question," she said, "where does this hospital keep there drugs?"

Mark looked at Kiba with a sly smile. "I knew you were to pretty too be _that _innocent," he said. He wasn't expecting the vicious punch that was delivered onto his head, leaving him with a matching knot.

"Tell me where the damn drugs are!" she yelled this time, losing her calm demeanor.

"Alright alright! They're on the-"

Bulma gripped Mark by the back of his shirt and pulled him out of the room. "Show me, because I don't have time to be looking into every room for these things."

"I... I can't breath!" Mark hissed out as he waved his hands in the air.

"If you can talk, you can breath! Now hurry!" her voice echoed into the hall.

Kiba stared at the door as the two disappeared down the hall. "Man, and I thought Ino was a bitch..." Kiba said under his breath.

Akamaru whined in agreement.

XxxoxxX

In an abandoned capsule store, Ino was sitting over Naruto. She was slowly channeling chakra into his weak body.

Naruto was angrily glaring at the wall. "Dammit! How come I have to be low on chakra!" he said with an angered tone.

"Well, I'm not sure if you remember, but you kind of created around five hundred clones. Plus you were tired from traveling the desert, and not to mention that you used chakra to carry Kiba-"

"Alright! I get it!" Naruto said as he crossed his arms across his chest. "I'm just mad that Goku gets to save the day!"

Ino couldn't help but chuckle. Even in the direst of situations, Naruto still wanted to be the hero. "Well I'm going to channel you as much as I can. You can use it much better than I can."

"Thanks Ino," Naruto said with a smile. "Hey, Ino?" Naruto started as his face took on a sad tone. "How come you were never mean to me?"

"Hm?" Ino said with confusion. She didn't expect that question to come from the boy.

"I mean, everyone else was mean to me except a few of you. I just want to know, why were you so nice?"

Ino thought for a moment. "Well, honestly, you're a sweet boy Naruto." This caused the boy to blush. "You were always nice, and you're a blond like me. And besides," Ino said with a slight smirk. "You're kind of cute too!"

Naruto's face turned into a deep shade of crimson. Did she just call him cute? "R-really? You think so?" Naruto said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, all of us Blondes are!" she said with a laugh.

"Aww, so does that mean me as well?"

Ino froze as she heard the voice whisper in her ear. She turned slowly and saw the sick smile that Deidara held on his face. "I must thank you for the compliment. For that, I won't kill you."

Naruto quickly sprung to his feet and faced the boy. "Where's Goku?" he demanded.

"Please, step aside and I won't hurt you," Deidara said with a smile. "We could actually have some... 'fun' after wards. 'Cause honestly, your cute too hm."

Ino stared at the boy in shock. She couldn't stop the shivering in her legs if she wanted too. She slowly took a step back, bumping into Naruto.

"I asked you a question, dammit!" Naruto yelled.

"He's dead, you'll meet him shortly," Deidara replied nonchalantly This caused a gasp fro both Naruto and Ino. "The clock is ticking," Deidara said. "It's either move or die."

Ino was terrified beyond believe. She could feel the killing intent flowing off of the boy in waves. If she didn't move, he would definitely kill her.

Deidara sighed. " Very well!" he said as he raised a hand to smack her.

Ino held her eyes shut, preparing for the impact. To her surprise, it never came. Ino opened her eyes to a sight that startled her a bit.

There stood Naruto, holding the guys hand in the air. As much as he tried to push, he couldn't move the boys hand by even an inch. Ino could see a shroud of orange chakra oozing off of him.

"N-Naruto?" Ino said under her breath.

Naruto glared daggers at Deidara, whom looked terrified of the boy. "I will not let you harm the second person that called me cute," Naruto said. Ino could hear a darker tone to his voice. This made her think of the day that he left the village. "Ino, run."

"W-what?" Ino said as she looked at the back of her blonde comrades head.

"I'm going to kill this guy, for Goku!" he said as he cocked back a fist and quickly punched Deidara through the wall of the building.

Ino was awoken from her fear as she heard the building trembling. She quickly ran out of the door, and looked back to see Naruto running towards a shocked Deidara.

"N-Naruto... what are you?"

XxxoxxX

And that's that. Another chapter out of the way. I hope you guys like the way the stories going, I'm trying to keep the plot as original as possible. This chapter was mainly to introduce what's going on outside of the fighting. I'm trying to pick up my writing pace, even though I'm doing it terribly. Once again, in need of a beta. Any help would be fine.


	9. The Evil Inside

Deidara rose to his feet after the punch from Naruto. He rubbed his jaw, and had to admit the brat packed a punch. A slow grin formed on his face as he saw the blonde quickly running towards him.

"So, you wanna play?" he said as he created four more small birds. "Then let's play!"

Naruto glared his eyes more as he saw the rapidly approaching birds. He rose his fore arms to guard, and was blown away as the first collided with him, causing a massive explosion that caused the earth to shake. The orange clad genin didn't expect that, nor the following explosions as the three remaining birds hit him and sent him to the ground.

"Naruto!" Ino yelled as she looked on with tears. She couldn't believe that she just saw her classmate get killed, right before her eyes. Ino fell to her knees and stared into the smoke cloud that came from the explosions.

Deidara smirked. "Art is an explosion," he said lowly. He then fell to one knee. "I put the last of my chakra into those birds for an extra effect." he rubbed the back of his head before he rose to his feet. "I hope I didn't kill him, Pein will definitely have my head."

Deidara slowly made his way towards the disappearing cloud. With the amount of chakra he had, Sasori was going to be an angry guy, considering he would have to carry him. He should've let the old bastard do the destroying of the city, then he wouldn't be so low on chakra. "Oh well," he said as he continued to smile, "I did all of the work, anyways."

XxxoxxX

"What was that?" Kurenai yelled as she witnessed the large explosions. She knew that Ino didn't know any jutsu that caused explosions, nor did Naruto.

"That was the end," Sasori responded in his deep voice, Causing Kurenai's eyes to widen. He turned away and looked towards the rising cloud of dust and smoke. "Deidara's just finished his first mission."

Kurenai stepped towards the ninja. "What are you saying?" she yelled at him. S ranked shinobi or not, she didn't care if her students were on the line. "Did he..."

"Kill them? Possibly," the doctor said matter of factly. As she noticed Kurenai tense up, she continued to speak. "The girl is the only one still there. The other two, I can't feel their chakra."

Kurenai fell to her knees. "N-no..." she said. "It can't be..."

" If Deidara killed him, I hope he's ready to take on that demon," Sasori grumbled low enough so that the women couldn't hear. Sasori stood still as he looked on. Something felt off, and his intuitions were usually always on point.

"Get up," Kurenai looked towards her mother. She saw the lady removing her doctors coat, as well as her pants. The lady was wearing a ninja suit underneath, similar to the ones that anbu wore.

"W-what are you..." Kurenai started, but was cut off by her mother.

"I don't know about you, but I don't take kindly to being bossed around by a couple of thugs." She continued to speak as she tied her hair into a long blue ponytail. "This man came and killed my friends, as well as one of your students, and, correct me if I'm wrong, the son of Minato."

Kurenai looked at her mother with a shocked expression. She couldn't believe that she was prepared to throw her life away. As her mother finished her preparing, she continued to stare at her. In all of her life, she never saw this side of her mother.

"Kurenai, I see you have your father's eyes. Are you great at genjutsu?" her mother asked as she pulled a capsule out of a pouch on her waist.

"Y-yes," Kurenai said, still in shock at this new mother of hers.

"That's good," the elder lady said. The capsule poofed open and she grabbed a long katana. The blade was long and slim, it looked sharp enough to cut through bone with no problem. The hilt of the blade was blue and gold, with black trimmings along it. She gripped the blade and turned towards Sasori. "I fight close. Cover me!" she yelled as she took off towards the man.

"W-wait!" Kurenai yelled to deaf ears, as her mom was already approaching the masked man.

Sasori lazily looked towards the approaching lady. As she swung at his head, he effortlessly leaned back to avoid the strike. The lady continued slicing at him, and he effortlessly dodged each one.

"You are starting to annoy me," he said with a low growl. "Begone!" Before the lady could register what happened, she released a pained scream as she was struck across the chest.

"Mom!" Kurenai yelled as she watched the lady fly back. The man revealed a long silver scorpion-like tail and quickly dispatched her mother with a single swipe.

The lady slowly stood to her feet and looked at Sasori. "Cheap shot, eh?" she said. "It's not nice to catch a lady off guard, you know.

Sasori snorted. "In case you haven't noticed, I could give a damn about chivalry. Do you check the gender of a bug before you smash it?" he drawled out.

The doctor scooped up her sword and looked back at the man. Now that he revealed his trump card, she had o find some way to dispatch it. She quickly glanced over her shoulder at her daughter, and saw a determined expression on her face. She couldn't help but smirk at that.

"If I'm a bug, I'd prefer to be a black widow!" she yelled as she charged back at the masked man. She jumped to attack high, and wasn't surprised as steel met steel. She pushed off of the tail and went through seals. "Lightning style! Lightning ball jutsu!" A small ball of concentrated electricity was sent spiraling towards Sasori. The man nonchalantly swiped the ball away with his tail.

"I don't like to waste my time. You'll be dead in two minutes," he said with confidence. Sasori then saw a mist spreading across the plains. He glanced towards the raven haired lady and saw that she disappeared

"How can she be dead in two minutes," he heard behind him. "If you'll be dead in seconds!" Sasori looked down as he felt a tree coiling around him. A thick vine also wrapped around his tail, preventing it from moving around. He saw the black haired lady poke her head out of the tree and stab him in the chest. As he looked down at the wound, he also saw a blade come from the front and stab him in the stomach.

"Got ya," he said. In a split second, his tail was free of the vines. It whipped backwards at first, causing a scream from Kurenai. At the same time that she thudded on the ground, a sickening squelch could be heard.

As Kurenai shakily rose to her feet, the sight in front of her sickened her. The mans long tail was sticking straight out, and at the end of it was her mother.

"No!" Kurenai yelled at the top of her voice. She flinched as Sasori casually tossed the lady on the ground in front of her.

"If you have any last words, say them." he said as he stared on in amusement.

"Mom!" Kurenai rushed to her mother's side and lifted her head onto her lap. She couldn't stop the flow of tears that streamed down her face. Her mother stared at her with a loving expression.

"Kurenai... I'm sorry..." she said weakly.

"Don't speak, save your strength!" Kurenai said. She held her hand over the fist sized hole in the ladies chest and channeled chakra into it.

"No, save yours," her mother said. "Take care... of M-Mark. H-h-he wants to b-be a f-f-fighter... Make him s-strong..." she said as her head fell limp.

Kurenai stared at the limp figure in her arms. She couldn't register what just happened. She just lost her mother. The mother that she was seeing for the first time in years. There was only one thing that she could do.

Cry like the little girl that her mother remembered.

Sasori looked at the scene in front of him. His cold heart couldn't help but feel for the lady. He knew the feeling of losing his parent, not in front of him but still. He didn't have it in him to finish the girl off.

But if she provoked him, he would unite them once again.

XxoxX

Naruto slowly opened his eyes. He sat up slowly and rubbed his throbbing head. The last thing he remembered was feeling explosions rock his body. He quickly looked at his arms and saw that they were free of any scars. "Weird..." he said as he rose to his feet.

It was then that Naruto realized his surroundings. He was standing in what appeared to be a sewer, with water up to his ankles. He could hear the sound of dripping, and it just made his surroundings even more creepy.

"Might as well walk around," he mumbled as he rose to his feet. Each step that Naruto took echoed, making him realize the size of this place. It had to be gigantic! "I hope there isn't any ghosts in here.." he mumbled. He then froze. "Dammit, why'd I have to say ghosts?" he said as he quickened his pace.

After what seemed to be an hour, Naruto froze at a cage. The cage was humongous! He could only wonder what was hidden behind it. He noticed that the top of the cage had a single sheet of paper that said seal.

After a minute of deciding what to do, Naruto finally decided to take a peek into the cage. It couldn't hurt to see what was inside, could it?

Naruto slowly walked tot he cage. After taking a deep breath, he slowly leaned in.

Naruto nervously looked, bu after not seeing anything happen he decided to get bold. "Hey! Anybody home!" Naruto heard his voice echo, but no response. He then decided to lean onto the cage.

Big mistake.

Naruto swiftly jumped back with a shriek as a large clawed paw reached for him. He fell to his butt, and looked into the cage. He was shocked to see two large slanted pupils glaring at him. "Wh-wh-wh-what's th-th-that!" he yelled in a high pitch.

The clawed paw continued to reach through the bars at him. He saw a large row of teeth, each tooth was larger than him in size. The fave leaned closer and showed to be a fox.

Naruto's eyes widened with fear. It was the Kyuubi.

"I'll kill you, you brat!" it yelled at the terrified blonde. Naruto crawled away quickly, trying to hide the tears that started to flow. The fox glared at him with an intense snarl on his face. It then sat up and glared at the young blonde.

"Are you..." Naruto said weakly. "The Kyuubi?" 

The large fox snorted. "No, I'm a freakin' pixy. Of course I am, you half pint piece of shit!" it growled at him. Naruto could feel the large amounts of killer intent washing off of the demon in waves.

"Where am I? How did you get out!" Naruto yelled.

"I didn't get out, but if you lean on my cage again, I most definitely will!" The demons large nine tails swished behind him and Naruto could feel the power washing over him in waves. He was stunned at how this demon could be inside of him. "This is your mind, you shouldn't be surprised how empty it is. You're brain is empty, after all.

Naruto took offense to that and decided to get brave. "You leave me alone, you big fur ball! You're stuck in here whether you like it or not!"

"Quiet!" Naruto froze as he saw the look of evil anger in the demon's eye. "Don't you DARE speak to me in such a way you insignificant human, do you understand me?" he more demanded than asked. After Naruto nodded furiously, the demon smirked. Nothing was more amusing than seeing fear in the eyes of those beings that tried to enslave him. "Good. Now let me make myself clear, I would love to see you dead," Naruto's eyes widened at that as he continued to shake, "but that would mean that I would die to. In case you didn't notice, that blonde bastard is about to end your pathetic life. You would have been dead a long time ago if it weren't for my help. Now, tell me insect, do you want to die today?"

Naruto glared at the demon. As much as he was scared, hee wasn't going to let him speak to him like that. "NO I don't want to die. And in case YOU didn't notice, you live inside MY head." The fox glared at the smaller being. "And this brain is small as you've pointed out, there isn't enough room for the two of us."

"So what, are you going to kick me out," the fox grinned at him. "I would love that, very much actually."

"No, if you're going to live here, you have to pay rent! Give me some power, so I can toast that bastard!"

The demon looked at Naruto with a amused smirk. As much as he hated the way this kid was talking to him, he admired his guts. His red chakra began to leak out of the cage and bubble at Naruto's feet.

"I'm giving you this, but not to help you brat, but to keep you alive so I can kill you myself.

Naruto smirked as he felt the power of the chakra. He felt unbelievably strong, Hell he felt that he could beat Kakashi-sensei!

"Now get out of here, and don't disgrace my name!" the Kyuubi yelled as Naruto was forcefully expelled out of his mind.

XxxoxxX

Deidara continued to smile as he stepped towards the unconscious genin. The boy was durable, he still was intact despite the explosions that racked his figure. At least he didn't have to deal with Pein.

Deidara froze as he felt a spike of chakra. He continued to stare ahead as he noticed red chakra bubbling out of the young boy in front of him.

"Crap, I gotta end it now!" he said as he gripped a senbon and prepared to throw it at the boys heart. Screw Pein, he'd go into hiding before he let the Kyuubi kill him. "Die!" he yelled as he swung his arm to throw the needle.

Deidara was shocked as he felt someone inter his head. He looked around and saw the blonde girl standing in his mind scape.

"Dammit, what kind of jutsu is this?" he yelled at the girl.

The smirking blonde girl looked at him. "I'm a Yamanaka!" she said proudly.

Deidara growled at the girl. "Get out of my HEAD!" he yelled as he ran towards the girl.

"Gladly!" she smirked as she left his mind scape

Deidara grabbed his head as he realized he was back in control. When he looked forward, he realized the blonde was inches from his face.

"Crap," was all he could mumble before he was rocked with a punch so hard that his body jerked back before he was sent flying away. Deidara wasn't given a moment to rest as he saw the boy running quickly after him. The Akatsuki member was kicked hard in his stomach, which caused him to vomit, then punched into the jaw. He felt heat radiating off of the boy with each hit that landed.

Ino could only look on with both amazement and fear. Her friend had completely changed. He was no longer the Naruto she knew, the funny, sweet boy that she grew to like.

No, he was a monster.

Naruto was beating the boy senseless. His style was unlike any taijutsu she had ever seen he was running on all fours like a Inuzuka, but he was sloppy with it. He also had something that shocked her.

He had a shroud of red chakra. And also a tail. A tail made of chakra.

Ino decided that it must have been some hidden Kekkai Genkai that he had and just awakened. Whatever it was, it came just in time to save them from total destruction. She just hoped that he wouldn't harm her in the process.

XxxoxxX

Sasori continued to stare at the lady crying over her lost mother. He was getting tired of it, and he also noticed the spike of chakra that could only be the Jinchuuriki. He took one final look at the lady and sighed.

"She's not going to come back, just because you cry over her. Do something productive with yourself, get stronger. Don't let her memory go to waste," he said as he began to walk away. He noticed that this only caused the lady to cry harder, and honestly at this point he could give a damn.

"Fire!" he heard a yell. He glanced over his shoulder and saw a small needle being shot at him. He effortlessly dodged it and glared at the attacker.

There, he saw an unexpected sight. There stood a young blue haired girl, holding a gun. Beside her was a small figure with a bowl cut of black hair. He noticed the look in the boys eyes and could only deduce that it was the dead woman's son.

"Mommy!" He yelled as he rushed to the ladies side. As he neared the corpse, his tears stream flowed more fluently. He couldn't move, he just stood frozen in fear at the sight of his sister with his dead mother on her lap.

The boy looked at Sasori with a look of rage in his eyes. If the kid was actually any threat, he would have surely been afraid. Luckily, he was not.

"You bastard, you killed my mother!" the boy screamed as he looked towards the masked bandit. Sasori chuckled.

"Wouldn't that make you the bastard?" he said dryly. This caused an expression of hate to cross the young boys face, and his sister to cry even harder.

Bulma looked at Mark and knew what he was about to do. "Mark no!" she yelled as he took off towards the man.

Sasori sighed. He didn't want to have to kill the child, but he was getting really pissed at this situation. He raised his tail once again and quickly stretched it to impale the boy.

"Mark!" Kurenai shrieked as she watched wide eyed as the blade continued to stretch towards the boy. Mark's eyes widened in realization. He realized too late that he just signed his death warrant.

In the blink of an eye, the sound of metal hitting metal echoed around the area. Sasori glared hatefully as he realized the scene in the front of him. His tail was in an epic war with a blade, held by a gargantuan toad. This could only be one person.

"Jiraiya," Sasori said as he jumped backwards to avoid a spiraling ball of chakra that left a huge crater where he stood.

"Ah, Sasori of the Red Sand. You have quite the bounty on your head!" Jiraiya said with a stern expression. Behind him, Master Roshi was holding the raven haired warrior, who was having a break down, crying in his arms.

"As much as I'd love to fight, times up," Gamabunta said, which received a nod from Jiraiya away.

Sasori grunted. As much as he hated to admit it, this was a fight he had no chance of winning. "My quarrel isn't with you,"

"No, it's with my student. So technically, yea it's with me." Jiraiya shifted his foot for better leverage and began charging a much larger rasengan.

Sasori quickly thought of a plan of action. He dropped the bandana off of his face and opened his mouth wide to reveal a cannon.

Jiraiya snorted. "Trust me, that won't work on me," he said.

"I know," Sasori said as he turned his aim towards the crying Kurenai. He fired a rapid volley of needles at the frightened lady.

"Crap!" Jiraiya quickly dispelled the giant ball and jumped in front of Kurenai. Quicker than the eyes could see, he went through the signs tiger, horse, boar, ram, rat and ended on snake. "Needle Jizo!" he yelled as his hair wrapped around him and hardened into a barrier. The senbon bounced harmlessly off of the shield. As the assault died down, Jiraiya released the barrier and saw that the puppet user was gone.

"Damn it!" Jiraiya said as he looked around. He looked at the ruined city and shook his head.

"Roshi, I'm going to find Naruto. Make sure that these guys aren't hurt too bad."

"Right!" the older man yelled with a nod. He then looked towards the crying lady on the ground as Jiraiya ran off. A smile spread his face. "I'll make sure to check every inch for injuries," he said with a perverted giggle.

XxxoxxX

Deidara slowly pulled himself to his feet. He was being beaten around by the little blonde brat for the past ten minutes, but it felt like hours. His usual cool demeanor was totally gone, and was replaced with a young boy, one that Deidara thought died long ago.

For the first time in a long time, Deidara was scared.

"Get up, you bastard!" Naruto yelled with venom in his voice.

Deidara stared at Naruto, gritting his teeth. His body was shaking out of his control. His face was battered, his right eye was swollen completely shut. He stuck his hand in his coat to try and mold some clay into chakra.

Before he could register what happened he released a feral scream. Deidara looked down and saw Naruto had his hand on his arm. The older blonde fell to his knees as he tried to wrench his arm from his opponents grip.

"Ghh! Let go you freak!" he yelled in panic. The pain traveling through his arm was immeasurable. Deidara stared into the boys red eyes and saw nothing but anger.

"Is this what you did to Goku?" Naruto asked in a low tone. "Made him SUFFER!" Deidara let loose a whimper as Naruto's grip tightened. "I'm going to make you feel it, tenfold!" A loud cracking sound was heard throughout the city, and followed close behind was a blood curdling scream.

Deidara fell cradling his arm as he rolled on the ground in agonizing pain. Tears involuntarily fell down his face as he held onto his limb. He tensed up as he saw the boy walk up to him.

"Y-you demon!" he yelled at Naruto. Naruto tensed as he heard that word. The word that everyone in his village called him. This caused his anger to rise even more. Naruto released a feral cry as he gathered a ball of red chakra into his open palm. The ball spun with ferocity as he stared the blond down.

Deidara's eye's widened He could feel the power pulsing in the attack. This would definitely be his last breath.

"Go to Hell!" Naruto yelled as he lunged towards the boy.

Naruto was shocked as he felt a hand grab the back of his shirt and toss him back a dozen yards. He looked up angrily and saw his teacher, Jiraiya glaring at him.

"What the Hell, Pervy Sage!" Naruto yelled angrily. His chakra flared at the older man.

Jiraiya calmly looked towards his student. Things must have gotten pretty bad if he was using the 9 tails chakra. "I won't let you do this, Naruto. You're not in control of your actions."

"I am!" Naruto yelled at his sensei. "He killed Goku!"

Jiraiya flinched at this. He slowly turned and glared at Deidara. "He did what?" he said in a low tone.

"He killed Goku!" Naruto yelled through tears. He couldn't control himself as tears started too fall.

"Naruto, calm down. I know that it's hard to lose a friend, but that's the life of a shinobi."

"Goku wasn't a shinobi! He was my best friend!" Naruto yelled through the tears. He cloak of chakra slowly started to fade as the tears streamed down harder. "He was... my" Naruto fell, but was caught by Jiraiya into a hug.

"It's OK, champ." Jiraiya ignored the tears and snot that protruded his clothing and was rubbing onto his stomach. "I know you want to kill the guy, Hell I do too. But we can't, not yet. We have to take him to be examined by Inoichi. We could find out their purpose."

Naruto sobbed into his sensei's shirt. He could only think about Goku. The laughter of the boy. The smile that he always wore. The only person that he could say he was smarter than. The more he thought about the boy, the harder he cried.

"G-Goku!" Naruto wailed once more before he fainted from his exhaustion.

XxxoxxX

Soooo... another chapter! I'm surprised myself. Did y'all like it? Does it sound believable? I hope that I'm capturing the characters correctly. If not, point them out and I'll try to keep y'all happy.


	10. Until We Meet Again

Until We Meet Again

"So... you say you're collecting the Dragon balls?" Jiraiya asked as he rubbed his chin. The group had assembled back in one of the few buildings that remained standing, which happened to be the hospital. Jiraiya was sitting in a room with Bulma and his Sensei Master Roshi.

Bulma nodded with a grim smile. "Yeah, that's right," she said. "I was going to wish for a boyfriend! But now, I guess I have other things that can be handled. First thing on the list, get Goku back!" she said with a shout.

Master Roshi was staring at the girl with a wide smile on. "So, you need a boyfriend?" he asked as he leaned in his seat to get a closer view.

Bulma glared at the old man. "Yeah, one that's around MY AGE!" she shouted as she slapped he old fool so hard that she let an imprint.

Jiraiya nodded at the girl. "That makes sense. He was a very brave boy, definitely one of the strongest I've ever encountered."

Bulma looked excited. "I'm sure Naruto will be happy! We already have five!"

Jiraiya's smile widened. "That's great! Do you know where the next one is?" he asked the young girl.

Bulma nodded as she dug into her bag. "It's... give me a minute... Aw, here it is!" she said with a smile as she pulled out a small white item. Roshi and Jiraiya quickly jumped behind her and leaned over her shoulder to look at the device. It had a green screen that had five dots, as well as two arrows pointing in different directions. "That way!" Bulma said as she pointed to one of the arrows.

"Cool!" Jiraiya said with a smile. "Lemme guess, you're father built that device?"

Bulma shook her head. "Nope! Won it at an auction. And it was only 12,000 zeni!"

Both men face planted the ground.

"Only? 12,000 zeni?" Roshi said as he stood up.

"Yep!" Bulma said with a grin.

"Hmm, if I'm not mistaken, that's where an old friend of mine lives!" Jiraiya said with a smile. "I've been planning on making a trip there!"

Bulma clapped her hands together. "Great! That mean's you can be my escort!" she said with a giggle.

Jiraiya smirked. "Of course! All Naruto needs is another adventure to clear his mind a bit. Besides, I still have to train him for his upcoming tournament."

"Then it's decided! As soon as Naruto's ready, we'll be on our way!" she said as she ran out of the room.

Master Roshi and Jiraiya sat in silence. After a few seconds, Roshi finally broke the silence.

"New idea for your story?" he asked his student.

"Oh yeah, and this will definitely be a best seller!"

XxxoxxX

Ino stood over Naruto's body. She couldn't believe the power that the blonde in front of her displayed. She wasn't sure what his Kekkai Genkai was but she would definitely find out.

It was then that Ino got an idea. She was a member of the Yamanaka clan, she could easily find out!

Ino put her fingers into the familiar seal of her clan. She began gathering chakra into her body. She was stopped however as she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Yamanaka." She looked up and saw the long white haired man that stopped Naruto from killing. As she stared into his eyes, she could see a serious look on his face.

"If you were to dig into his mind, you would discover an S ranked secret. That would force me to kill you, which I honestly don't want to do." Jiraiya said as he saw the girl slowly lowering her hands. Jiraiya smiled. "But I promise, he will be strong enough to make it out of this!"

Ino shook slightly as the man's words sunk in. She wasn't sure why she trusted his stranger, or even how the man could threaten her yet she didn't feel a drip of fear, yet the seriousness in his tone all the same. Ino nodded as she looked at the man. "Who... are you?" she asked him in a low tone.

"Me?" Jiraiya said with a confident smirk. "I'm the Legendary Jiraiya!" he said as he struck a pose.

Ino looked wide eyed at the man. "You're... him?"

"Yep!" he said as he turned to walk out. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't let it get you down. I'm sure all of your friends will make it out of this stronger than before!"

Ino nodded slowly as she continued to stare at her friend as she heard the clicking of Jiraiya's of shinobi's shoes. She wanted to know Naruto's secret, but she wasn't willing to get killed over it.

She sighed Guess she just had to trust Jiraiya.

XxxoxxX

Kurenai held her kid brother a he cried. They were sitting in her mother office, which honestly hadn't changed since she was a young girl. The walls were covered with books and files, and she had a small bed for her to sleep in. They sat on the side of the bed and she was rubbing his back, telling him that everything was going to be fine.

She couldn't believe that that her mother was taken from her, or even that she now had a younger brother. She wanted to cry, but stayed strong for her brother.

It's not that her mother was a ad person, they just never saw on eye to eye level ever since she was a child. While her mother was strict and no nonsense, her father liked to play around with her. He was a trained shinobi and aught her many tricks while her mother was usually at work.

Kurenai couldn't help but wipe a tear away. Her chest was soaked from Mark but she didn't mind. She wanted to be their to support him, and she promised to protect him for as long as she could.

The black beauty looked down as she felt the sobs lessening. She could feel Mark's chakra slowly fading out; he was finally falling asleep.

Kurenai now couldn't decide what to do. On one hand, she wanted to stay and raise her brother. The village had nothing left, and she was almost certain that no one else here was good at healing. Her mother was the only doctor in the town ever since she was a little girl.

As much as she wanted to, however, she couldn't leave her team. They needed her more than anything right now. Hinata and Kiba suffered serious injuries while she wasn't harmed in the least. She felt that she failed them both as a sensei.

Kurenai placed Mark on the bed and tucked him in. She stood up and began looking around the office. She was amazed at how much informational booklets her mom had stashed. She saw many books on sensing and medical ninjutsu as well. She continued to browse through the books, and made sure to seal some of the higher advance ones to share with the hospital in Konoha.

Kurenai took a seat on the chair in front of her mothers computer desk. She smiled, remembering how her mother wouldn't allow her to sit in this chair. "Doctors only," she would say as she shooed the young girl away. Curiosity got the best of her and she opened the top drawer.

Kurenai browsed through the drawer and saw nothing interesting. It mainly held office supplies, such as pencils and band aids. She quickly lost interest and opened the second.

Kurenai saw a lone binder in the drawer. It looked worn and used, so she decided to open it. What she saw surprised her.

The first page of the binder was a drawing. There were three people, a man, a lady, and a young girl. They were obviously family, the girl and father had black hair and red eyes while the mother had blue hair and black eyes. The people were each stick figures, drawn by a kid.

The kid was her.

Kurenai struggled to hold back the tears, but failed miserably at it. She remembered drawing this picture. She gave it to her mother on her third birthday. Her mother was so excited that she posted it on her office wall.

Kurenai continued flipping through the pages. She quickly realized that this was a collection of everything that she ever did. There were drawings like the first, her first tooth, and plenty of her papers from her preschool class. She was hit with a huge wave of nostalgia.

Kurenai flipped to the last page. On it was a note in what was unmistakeably her mothers handwriting. She trembled as she gripped the note and began reading.

_Dear Kurenai,_

_If you're reading this, then you and your pathetic father must have returned to this city. If you did, then I hope you have another mother, because I'm not dealing with his crap anymore. This is a letter, just too explain a few thing to you._

_First off, I know that it seems like I'm harsh on you, but that's because your fathers so soft on you. He lets you get away with anything, and I just don''t like it. A child needs discipline, that's the way I was raised. I never hated you, I just didn't want you to grow up and be spoiled like Rukia's kid. Since you're being raised by him alone, I won't even try to imagine how spoiled you are._

_Second, I want to tell you that you have a brother. He's just like you were as a kid, a loud mouthed trouble-maker. He's rather small, however and gets bullied often. When you were a kid, you were beating down the other kids with no problem. He really didn't get you fire._

_And final, I want you to be strong. I know it must be hard growing up with a single parent but you can do it. Become a powerful shinobi just like my father and his before him. Never let your students get hurt, and make sure to find a man that you love. I do want grand kids!_

_Love,_

_Kimiko Yuhi_

_PS: Know that I loved you, Kurenai. If I'm dead when you read this, I leave Mark in your hands. Do what you think is best for him, I raised you to be strong minded._

Kurenai was crying as she finished her letter. She couldn't hold back the fountain of tears that formed after the first sentence of the letter. She knew that under her mother's harsh exterior, their had to be the mother that she longed for.

The female shinobi read the letter over and over as her crying calmed down. After a few minutes, she wiped the tears off of her face and walked towards her baby brother.

She looked at the small boy and couldn't help but smirk. He favored her a lot, besides the black eyes and blue hair. She gave him a kiss on the head as she tucked him tighter into the blanket. "Tomorrow, baby brother, your dream will come true." A smile formed on her tear ridden face. "You will... become a shinobi."

XxxoxxX

Naruto slowly opened his eyes. He grimaced and gripped his head as he felt a constant throbbing. He released a loud groan, he was exhausted.

As he lay their, he tried to remember what happened. He remembered fighting Deidara, as well as being healed by Ino. He could recall saving the citizens of the city with Ino and Goku-

Goku.

Naruto quickly sprung to his feet as he yelled his friends name. He slipped his feet into his sandals as he pulled on his jacket.

"Hey Naruto, I hear that you're finally- whoa!" Bulma shrieked as the blonde bumped into her. They both released a shriek as they fell to the ground.

Naruto fell face first. He landed on top of something soft, and he had to admit that it felt pretty good. He gripped his pillow as he pushed himself up. He then realized he was looking into the face of Bulma.

And she looked pissed.

Using his trained speed, Naruto quickly jumped off of the girl and backed up while blushing. He noticed the girls face was a bright red and she was gritting her teeth as she sat up.

"B-B-Bulma, I can explain!" he yelled to deaf ears as she rolled up her sleeves and approached him.

"Shut it, Pervert!" she yelled as she socked him on the head.

"Owww!" he yelled as he rubbed his throbbing plus pounding head. He ignored the insults that the girl threw his way as he tried to cope with the pain.

Bulma continued to glare at the blonde. "What are you doing out of bed? You're supposed to be resting!" she yelled at the recovering boy.

Naruto's eyes sprung open as he ignored the pain. "Goku!" he yelled as he jumped back to his feet. He quickly jumped onto the windowsill and was into the town before anyone knew what happened.

Neither of the two noticed a giggling toad sitting under the bed, scratching away in a notepad. "This is gold!" he muttered away to himself.

XxxoxxX

Deidara sat in silence. He was not happy with himself. Not only did his piece of shit partner ditch him, but he got his ass handed to him by the very person he was sent to retrieve. This was humiliating to the blonde. He couldn't see out of one eye, and the pain running through the numerous cuts and bruises on his body was unbearable.

Now he was tied up in a dark room all alone. He couldn't escape, that blasted old man set a paralyzation seal on him, on top of a chakra seal. He was simply a sitting duck, waiting to be thrown into a fiery pit.

Deidara spit on the floor. He couldn't believe how unlucky he was. He was only a member of the organization for a week and he already failed his first mission. And then that damned Sasori was just going to ditch him.

Tears involuntarily fell down Diedara's jawline as he grit his teeth. He was only fifteen! Their was many things he wanted, and it was all being stripped from him prematurely. He couldn't believe that he was being held to be taken back to the strongest of the villages, the Leaf. He heard stories about their T&amp;I Division, and none of them were good.

Deidara finally came to a decision. He didn't want to do it, but it was his only hope to make it out alive.

He had to do it.

XxxoxxX

"Goku!" Naruto yelled for the umpteenth time. He was walking around the ruined city looking for any traces of his friend. He couldn't find anything in any of the destroyed buildings he checked. His search was going on for over an hour, but he'd never give up.

"Goku!" Naruto yelled again. He was tired and in pain, but to Hell with it. Even if Goku was dead, he at least had to give him a proper burial. He refused to think of the boy being deceased, so he continued to search.

Naruto jumped on a standing pole and gazed over the city. He looked all around, but he couldn't see anything. It was then he saw a familiar red dot in the distance.

Naruto quickly leaped off the pole and took off towards the object. After a few minutes he reached his destination.

Naruto bent down and picked up the object. It was the small red pole that Goku owned. As he looked at it, he was overwhelmed with emotion. On one side, he could see a large black burn mark.

On the other side, he saw blood.

Naruto fell to his knees as he gripped the object. He looked around for any traces of the boy, but all he could see was rubble. Naruto then saw something that made his heart skip a beat.

He rushed to the pile of rubble and froze. That was definitely what he thought it was. It was Goku's tail.

And it was moving!

Naruto quickly used his remaining strength to dig into the shattered building. He threw rocks and bricks out of his way as he dug for his friend. After a few seconds he saw his friend.

"N-Naruto?" Goku said weakly. He looked terrible. His body was covered in cuts and bruises, and parts of his gi was blown away, showing his body. One of his eyes were halfway open.

On Naruto's face was a smile from ear to ear. "Goku!" he yelled as he dived to hug his friend. Goku grimaced at the touch, he was still weak, but Naruto just kept hugging as tears flowed down his face. "Thank Kami you're alive!" he said aloud.

"Whose alive?" Naruto heard Bulma say. He released his friend and saw the entire gang standing behind him, excluding Kurenai's brat brother, Kiba and his pup, and Hinata.

Jiraiya smiled at the scene in front of him. "You're pretty you're pretty tough, brat!" he said to Goku.

Roshi nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I thought you were a goner kiddo. I couldn't sense you at all!"

Bulma quickly rushed to Goku's side. "Goku, thank goodness you're- wait. Are you okay?" she asked as she saw the weak expression on his face.

Goku shivered. "So... hungry..." he said, causing everyone to face plant.

"Yep, he's okay," Bulma responded as she rose to her feet.

XxxoxxX

The entire gang was gathered in front of the gates of Orange Star City. Everyone was silent, they just had a memorial service for Kimiko. After everyone paid their respects, they decided it was time to part ways. Naruto and Goku stood together, talking about their favorite foods. Kiba and her two teammates Kiba and Akamaru, while the others were standing talking. Deidara's arms and legs were chained up and both being held by Kurenai.

Mark was sad at the funeral, but his spirits quickly rose when he was told he was going to become a shinobi.

"Oh boy sis! Really? No kidding?" Mark yelled as he hopped up and down, doing dances. Everyone laughed at the energetic boy.

"So, where are you guys going again?" Kurenai asked as she looked towards Jiraiya.

"That way!" Bulma pointed as she looked at her Dragon Radar.

Master Roshi nodded. "Yes. That way, my dear." he slowly walked towards Kurenai. "You wouldn't mind giving an old man a hee hee hee... goodbye kiss?" Roshi asked with a blush. Ino rolled her eyes at the old man.

"Pervert," Ino and Bulma both muttered under their breath.

"Sorry, I'm taken," Kurenai said with a slightly disgusted look. This caused Kiba to chuckle and Hinata to blush.

Kiba nudged Hinata's shoulder and nodded towards Naruto. The girls face turned a blood red as she noticed him grabbing her and dragging her closer to the other three teens.

"Yo! Goku!" Goku turned towards the voice of Kiba. He smiled.

"Hey! It's the puppy and Akamaru!" he said aloud.

"My name is Kiba, you stupid monkey!" Kiba yelled with a tick mark on his head. He sighed. "Anyway, I want to thank you for saving our ass the other day." he reached his hand out with a feral grin. "But the next time we meet, I'll be saving your ass!" he said with a grin.

"OK!" Goku said with a smile as he shook Kiba's hand. "After you save my ass, you can save Naruto's too!" he said with a wide smile.

Naruto glared at the two boys. "I don't need you guys to save me. In case you forgot, Yamcha ran from me!" he said with a smirk.

"Yeah yeah, after Goku broke his ribs maybe!" Kiba said with a laugh.

Goku turned towards Hinata. He smiled as he held out his hand. "Can I save your ass too?" he asked her.

Hinata blushed harder than she ever did in her life. She didn't know how to respond to the heroic boy that saved her. "Y-y-yes," she said as she held out her hand to shake his.

When their hands met, Hinata fainted. Kiba was used to this, so he quickly got behind her and caught her.

Naruto and Goku scratched their heads. "Did I hurt her?" Goku asked in a panicked tone.

"Nah, she does this all the time," Kiba said, while his teammate agreed with a bark.

"Kiba, it's time,"Kurenai said as she gripped Deidara's shackles, causing him to growl slightly. "Mark, keep up as best as you can," she said as she took off in a sprint. Kiba looked towards Kurenai and nodded. He shifted Hinata into a comfortable position.

"Later guys!" he said as he took off in a sprint. Ino waved as she followed suit.

The five people left watched their friends disappear. "Well," Bulma said, "off to get those Dragon Balls!" she said as she pulled out a capsule. After pressing the button and throwing it into the air, the capsule became a rather large luxury RV. The vehicle was big and blue. It had air conditioning, as well as a built in pool. The boys looked at it, each with astonished looks on their faces.

"Let me guess," Jiraiya said, "won it at an auction?"

Bulma giggled. "No, silly. I bought it when we made it to town! It was on sale for 250,000 zeni, I had to get it!" she said as she turned toward the vehicle. "Now, lets go!" she said as she pumped her fist in the air.

"Alright!" both boys yelled as they rushed in.

"Not so fast!" the boys froze as Master Roshi held his stick in the front of them.

"What, Pervy Gramps?" Naruto said with an annoyed tone.

"You're not riding in here," Jiraiya said as he stepped in front of them and entered the vehicle. "You two will be training."

Goku's face lit up. "Oh boy, training?"

"What?" Naruto yelled at the top of his voice. He pointed at Jiraiya. "Is this one of you old geezers stupid plots to get alone with Bulma?" he demanded.

"No, of course not," Jiraiya said with a smirk. "It's just that I haven't taught you anything except water walking and the Rasengan. It's time to build your physical abilities."

Naruto glared at the man, not trusting anything he was saying. "Well what do you have in mind?"

Jiraiya smiled as he stepped toward both boys. He placed a hand on each of their foreheads, and they each started shaking.

"W-what's happening?" Goku asked.

"What did you do?" Naruto demanded.

"Relax," Jiraiya responded with a smile. "It's just weight seals. Their actually on the lower levels as well, only twenty pounds on each limb." he chuckled as the boys struggled a little. "Now, keep up with us. I have some research to do!" he said with a giggle.

"Those bastards!" Naruto yelled as the vehicle cranked up.

"Come on, this should be fun!" Goku yelled as he ran after the carriage.

"Wait up!" Naruto yelled as he attempted to catch up.

XxxoxxX

A/N: Hey. I'm interested in power levels, so I'm going to try and do them.

Goku: 10

Naruto: 6

Bulma: 2

Ino: 3

Roshi: 95

Jiraiya: 84

Kiba: 5

Akamaru: 3

Hinata: 5

I hope that seems accurate. Any changes I should make?

I'm open to suggestions.


	11. The Message! BitterSweet Rivals!

The Message! Bitter/Sweet Rivals!

Hiruzen sat at his desk, signing papers like always. At first glance one would think that he was carefully reading the papers before he signed them. His pace was slower than usual, and there was so much paper that he had a couple of large stacks on the floor. In reality, his mind was on everything except the papers.

The old man was anxious. His student was out with Naruto for two weeks and he hadn't heard anything from him yet. He didn't doubt the power of the Sannin, he just knew that the man wasn't invincible. Even with all of Jiraiya's power he would be helpless if he were to take on numerous S ranked shinobi while also protecting Naruto.

He was also curious of the progress the boy was making. Everyone knew that the sage was a great teacher, he was not only trained by a Hokage but he taught one as well. He knew Naruto was stubborn but the old man had a thing for bringing the best out of people.

He was also worried that the boy may miss his fight. Although he admitted that Neji was leagues ahead of Naruto in just about everything, he was certain that Naruto would find a way to win. Naruto had that effect on him, he could never doubt him in the most dire situations.

Hiruzen sighed as he rubbed his temples. He swore that he could feel wrinkles forming on his face. He assured himself that he would retire after these exams and find him a replacement for the position. He could see the leader of the Nara clan taking his position or even Kakashi, but they both were too lazy for the job. Jiraiya would flat out deny him and those were his only three candidates. Regardless, someone else was going to wear this hat.

Hiruzen slightly raised his eyebrows as he heard a poof on his desk. He noticed a red toad with blue markings above either eye and on the top of his head. He also had a pair of green goggles hanging around his short neck.

"Yo! How are you doing, Hokage?" the toad asked in a cheerful tone.

"I'm fine Kosuke," he said, with a forced smile. "I'm hoping you bring good news from Jiraiya?"

"Yep!" the toad said aloud with pride. "He told me to tell you that everything's OK on his end. Him and Naruto met some people and are traveling together with them. They're on a journey that will be used as a learning experience for the tadpole. The kid even has a rival. He says the rival could probably become a Chunin with little effort."

Hiruzen nodded.. "Has he been continuing to train Naruto?"

The toad rubbed his chin in thought as he began to speak. "Hmm, when he summoned me he was riding in some type of machine with an old man and a hot chick." Hiruzen's face turned red at the mention of the girl. "She'd really hot, I mean like a fire jutsu wouldn't compare and-"

"Where was Naruto?" Hiruzen asked to change the subject.

"Well I'm not sure which one is Naruto, but he had a black haired boy and a blonde boy chasing them. The both had weighted seals on their head, so they're obviously training."

Hiruzen tapped a finger on the desk. "And has he encountered Kurenai?" Hiruzen asked to change the subject.

The toad snapped his fingers like he had an epiphany. "Ah, the kunai lady! Yeah, he said to tell you that she should be here any day now. She is also bringing two new people, one prisoner, one potential genin. He said that she will brief you on all of the details of their mission."

Hiruzen continued to stare at the toad as he thought. "Is there anything else?" he asked with a hint of hope in his eye.

The toad began to rub his chin again. "Nope, I think that's it." Hiruzen's eyes drooped as he heard this.  
"No, wait! He also said that this new book of his will be better than all the others combined!" At the mention of the book, the old mans eyebrow twitched. He forced himself to not smile as he nodded at the toad, which dispersed with a wave.

Hiruzen finally allowed a smirk to cross his face. He was happy that everything was going well, and even more happy that everyone successfully made it back safe. He could finally release a sigh of relief.

His smile widened even more as he thought. "I can't wait to read this new book!" he said to himself much louder than he anticipated as he continued to read through a paper.

XxxoxxX

Jiraiya was laid in the hot tub sipping on sake. This vehicle was amazing! It had an inside bar, a jacuzzi, and even a pole for women to do Kami knows what on it! He tried to coax Bulma into joining him in his tub, but she declined rather harshly.

Bulma made herself the designated driver. She was extremely annoyed by the two old geezers, their attempts to get with her were terrible. She wished that the two boys were on the inside with her.

Bulma kept her eyes on the thermometer and realized that the temperature was increasing rapidly. "Whoa! It's 115 degrees out there!" she exclaimed.

"Oh really?" the old turtle hermit said as he jumped beside the girl. "Then maybe you should take your shirt off, then you'll cool do-argh!" Bulma smashed on the breaks, causing the old man to fly face first into the windshield. A trail of blood was left smeared on the glass as he slowly slid to the ground.

Bulma opened the door and ran outside. "Goku! Naruto! You can ride on the inside now!" she yelled back. Bulma heard a laugh and soon saw two trails of sand running into her direction. The first one reached her, and a couple seconds later a tired Naruto did the same.

Goku giggled as Naruto fell to the ground. "What... are... you...?" Naruto asked the boy. Goku simply stared at Naruto over his head.

"Get up, Naruto! I've been running all day, I'm hungry!" he said.

Naruto's stomach growled as well. He struggled to his feet. It was amazing how much stamina his new friend possessed. At first Goku struggled a little, but after a few hours, he was moving like nothing was holding him back. Naruto still struggled a bit to move. He wasn't going to show it in front of Goku, however.

"Come on! This baby even cooks for you!" Bulma said happily.

Both boys faces lit up. "Really!" they yelled. Before Bulma could respond, she felt a burst of wind blow past her. She turned around and saw that both boys were already inside, sitting at the table.

Bulma shook her head and couldn't help but to smile. She pressed a button on the monitor. A loud beeping could be heard, and then a mechanical voice. "What will you like to eat today?" it said.

"Fish!"

"Ramen!"

"Bulma!"

Everyone's eye twitched at the response of the old turtle hermit. Bulma's face turned a dangerous red as she quickly approached him and began pummeling the old perv while shouting obscenities. Naruto and Goku laughed at the sight, while Jiraiya grimaced. This reminded him a lot of his old teammate. The ferocity in each strike was tremendous.

After five minutes of an old man getting beat bloody by a teen, they heard a beep. "Your meals are done," the voice said. The table opened up and out rose a feast that caused everyone's mouth to water. There in front of them was a full buffet. There was many flavors of ramen, as well as types of fish. Stewed fish, baked fish, fried fish, the list went on!

Before anyone could let out a single word, both boys were stuffing their faces with food. Bulma stared at the two disgusted as they wolfed it down. It didn't seem like they were chewing in the slightest.

Goku looked up at Bulma. "Wanna bite?" he asked in between biting a chunk out of a large grilled salmon. He held the fish towards her and she almost barfed at the dead look in its eyes.

"Uhhh... no thanks," she said slowly. Goku shrugged his shoulders and stuffed the entire fish into his mouth. When he pulled the tail back out, all that was left was bone.

Jiraiya smirked at seeing the two boys eat. The boys needed all the energy after the intense training they did. He walked towards the boys and sat at the table.

"How was the training?" he asked with a smirk.

"It was awesome!" Goku yelled without stopping his onslaught of eating.

"It was torture!" Naruto yelled. "It's one hundred freakin' degrees out there!"

Jiraiya nodded. "Being a shinobi means that you'll be exposed to many different elements. The heat, the cold, the rain, it doesn't matter to the other shinobi."

Naruto grimaced as he thought about what the man said. "Well, what about all of that running?" he asked. He wasn't going to let the old pervert win tis argument.

"Well," Jiraiya said as he grabbed a bowl of ramen, "as shinobi, it's not uncommon for us to run long distances. Maybe your mission is to deliver a package in a certain time, maybe you must run from a shinobi that is over powering you, who knows. It's things like this that we shinobi must deal with."

Naruto glared at the old man. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, I won't have that problem. No ninja will ever make _me _run away."

Jiraiya smirked at the kid. "Yeah, but a girl may."

Naruto began blushing as Bulma began laughing at the two. He jumped on the table, knocking some plates onto the floor. "I will never run from a girl! Only wimps like you would!"

"Blah blah!" Jiraiya said as he continued to slurp his ramen. "Why don't you and Goku go and wash youselves. You're stinking up the whole van!"

"OK!" Goku yelled as he finished chewing the last fish. He quickly dropped his clothes on the spot and toook off towards the bathroom. "Are you coming Naruto?" he asked as he reached for the door.

Naruto blushed and turned away. "As if!" he said defiantely.

"OK!" Bulma said as she finally stood up. "It's time to continue this trip!"

Naruto watched Bulma walk towards the driver's seat. He admired the sway of her hips and couldn't take his eyes off of her. He had to admit that she was by far the prettiest girl that he'd ever seen.

"Pick your mouth up Gaki." Naruto flinched and looked towards a smiling Jiraiya.

"Wha? I wasn't-" 

"Save it," Jiraiya said with a smirk. "I remember my first love too."

Naruto rose to his feet and stormed away from the table as he heard the vehicle engine start up. He had to get away before he became just like his sensei.

A pervy genin.

XxxoxxX

Sasuke was running for his life. He dodged jutsu after jutsu, but they just continued to fly at a rapid pace.

His sharingan was blazing wildly to aid him in his escape. When he felt his attacker take a slight pause in his jutsu, he decided to do his own.

"Fire style! Phoenix fire jutsu!" Sasuke felt a rapid flurry of fire at the oncoming shinobi. As he saw the fire consume the man, he swiftly turned around to block the oncoming kunai.

In a flash, he was caught in a heated battle of taijutsu. He threw more attacks, but landed much less than he expected. He feinted with a right hook, but pulled back and sent a left kick, which was blocked by his attacker.

He threw a series of punches, each aimed towards a different target, yet he couldn't land a single punch.

He then saw a punch coming out of the corner of his eye. He could see it as if it were in slow motion. He leaned back to avoid it, but was knocked onto the ground with a ton of force. He flipped back onto his feet and reared back a punch, but was shocked as he felt a punch meet his with more force.

Sasuke pulled back his fist and threw kunai at the shinobi, whom dodged the with ease. He quickly went through seals again. He glared as he saw his opponent doing the exact same seals in front of him.

"Fire style! Fire ball jutsu!" they both yelled. Two equally large balls of fire met and caused a loud explosion. Sasuke looked around for his opponent and ducked as he felt a kick coming in his direction. Kicked backwards towards his attacker, but it was blocked with ease.

Sasuke growled. He refused to lose! He released a battle cry as he swung with everything that he had. He smiled as he saw his fist going to connect with the mans cocky smile, but growled as the man ducked. Sasuke released a groan as he felt a swift punch to his stomach. He sank to the ground and gripped his stomach. He opened his eye and felt a kunai pressed to his neck.

"You're dead," he heard the lazy voice say. The figure then dissapeared in a puff of smoke, as another appeared beside him reading an orange book.

Sasuke growled as he sat up. "I can see the attacks coming!" he said with a growl. "My damn body just won't react in time!"

"Then get better," Kakashi said without lifting his face. "train your body to move at greater speeds. It's pointless to see an attack if you can't dodge it."

Sasuke grit his teeth as he stared at the man. He didn't need him to point out every flaw he made, he knew that he wasn't perfect!

"Oh, and by the way," Kakashi said while still reading, "I heard that Naruto is doing pretty good." Sasuke tensed up at the mention of his teammate. "He took on a B ranked shinobi and actually won."

Sasuke grit his teeth. Naruto was actually progressing, and maybe faster than him! It must be the training from the Sannin that did it, he was sure of it.

Sasuke forced himself to his feet. He got into his fighting stance. If there was one thing that he would prevent at any cost, it was letting that idiot be stronger than him.

"Again!" he yelled as he charged at his sighing sensei.

"_Perfect," _Kakashi said with a small smirk as he got on the defensive.

XxxoxxX

"Is... is that fire?" Bulma asked. The group was looking towards a mountain that seemed to be covered in... well, fire.

"So it seems," Master Roshi said. "I wonder what caused it."

"Maybe there was a great battle here," Naruto piped in. "Maybe it's still going on!" he yelled excitedly.

"I doubt it," Jiraiya said as he stared straight ahead. "I don't sense anything unusual happening."

As the group got closer to the mountain they could really see the magnitude of the flames. The fire consumed an entire mountain!

"I hope that student of mine is alright..." Roshi said in a grim tone.

Jiraiya pat the old man on the back. "You know that a little fire won't hurt him. He could probably take me on, on a bad day of course."

"Well, we can stop right here, because I'm not getting the RV close enough to fry the tires!" Bulma said as she came to a halt.

As the doors opened, the two boy rushed out.

"Bet ya I'll beat you to the Dragin ball! Naruto yelled as he took off in a sprint.

"You're on!" Goku yelled back as he took off behind him.

"Wait guys! You forgot your sunscreen!" Bulma yelled to deaf ears. She sighed as she saw the boys didn't slow down one bit. "Well, do you guys need any-"

Bulma turned towards the old men and saw both of them laying with their shirts off. "Yes!" they said in unison.

Bulma shuddered as she looked at the old men. "Goku! Naruto! Wait up!" she yelled as she took off behind the boys.

XxxoxxX

"What are we going to do, Yamcha?" the small blue feline, Puar, asked his friend.

"We wait," Yamcha said. He smirked as he saw Goku and Naruto leaving the stopped vehicle. "We just have to get the girl all alone."

"Do you know the old men?" Puar asked with curiousity.

Yamcha nodded. The bald one is Master Roshi. He may be the most powerful man in the world, possibly. HE is the creator of the Kamehameha wave, one of the most deadly tchniques in the world. The other is Jiraiya, Sannin of the Leaf Village. He's the student of Master Roshi and the current Hokage, as well as the teacher of the late Fourth Hokage."

Puar started sweating. "So... you can't win?" he asked with his high voice.

Yamcha shook his head. "No, but I know their weakness." A smile spread on his face. "All it's gonna take is a little help from you Puar."

Puar looked confused at the bandit. "What are you talking about?" he asked. Yamcha slid towards his partner and whispered in his ear.

"Ahh!" Puar said with a smile. "Just give me a minute!"

XxxoxxX

And that wraps that up. Not much action, but hey at least its something.

XxxoxxX

Goku: 8 (with weights)

Naruto: 4(with weights)

Bulma: 3

Yamcha: 9

Roshi: 95

Jiraiya: 84

Sasuke: 11

Sasuke (with Sharingan): 14

Kakashi: 54


	12. Fire Mountain

I do not own Dragonball or Naruto... yet.

A Big, Giant Fight! The Bikini Clad Killer!

On a lone mountain, an immense fire was bellowing. The blaze could be seen for miles out and resembled a mini sun sitting on the planet Earth. Most people turned away from this danger, but not three young travelers. They have been walking for the better part of an hour, refusing to rush at this temperature.

"It's soooooo hot!" Naruto complained as he walked. His shirt was taken off of his body and wrapped around his waist. He left his jacket in the RV after some pleading from Bulma. He wasn't used to this extreme heat, the Leaf Village stayed rather comfortable year round.

Bulma released a loud groan. She was tired of hearing the young blonde complain. "I didn't know ninja cried this much," she grumbled.

Goku began to giggle. "Look guys, we're almost at the top! Naruto, I bet I'll beat you up there!"

Naruto growled. Whether he was tired or not, he wasn't going to lose to this guy! "You're on!" he yelled as he took off with his companion.

Bulma groaned again. How did she ever get stuck with these two hyperactive kids? She gripped a capsule off of her waist and tossed it onto the ground. Her familiar scooter appeared, and she hurriedly hopped on it.

Bulma was amazed at the size of the inferno. As she got closer, she could see that the entire mountain was literally ablaze. It was both shocking and scary that such a large fire could even exist! She wondered what the story behind the whole thing was, but decided that it didn't really matter. "All I need is my Dragon Ball, and I'll be good to go!" she yelled triumphantly.

As Bulma pulled up, she saw the boys were already standing at the base of the mountain. Both boys appeared a tad winded, or maybe it was just the heat. They were both standing on the outskirts of a ruined city. Many small houses were ruined.

"Looks like I win again, Naruto!" Goku yelled with a smile. The blonde genin glared at his rival.

"Just barely! It's only this freakin' heat that helped you!" Naruto kicked a stone out of frustration. He froze however as he realized that it wasn't a stone at all. His face was drained of color. "Is that..."

Bulma's face displayed extreme disgust. "A skull! EW!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Goku, get it away from me!"

Goku bent down and picked up the disembodied head. "Hey, mister. I don't think my friend likes you, but can you please tell me where you keep the Dragon Ball?" Both of his friends fell backwards at the boys naivety.

"Hiya!" Bulma kicked the skull out of Goku's hand. It went sailing into the city.

"Bye, friend!" Goku yelled as he waved at the skull.

XxxoxxX

A large figure was knelt over, eating a large piece of meat. He could only sit and wonder where his daughter was.

He angrily bit into his meat. If only he could get into his house! It was way too hot out here, and he really missed his comfortable bed. All of his jewels and good clothes were in his castle!

"That damn Uchiha..." he mumbled as he vigorously chewed his meat. He was beyond angry. If only he had someone to fight and take his anger out on!

'Thonk!'

"Oww!" The large man rubbed his head. He looked around, and saw a smiling skull that just hit him in the cranium. He growled and stumped the skull into fragments. "Skulls don't fly," he mumbled. "Someone's in my territory!" the large figure jumped to his feet and began a slow trek to the city.

XxxoxxX

"Goku, do you think you can fly up there and get the Dragon Ball?" Bulma asked her companion.

Goku lifted up another skull off the ground and placed it on his face. "I tried that once, and look what happened!" he said with a giggle.

"Goku, you're crazy!" Bulma said with a smile.

Naruto was walking out of one of the ruined houses. "I don't think anyone lives here," he said as he scratched his head.

Bulma wiped sweat off of her brow. "Are you surprised? It's like two hundred degrees!"

Naruto giggled nervously. He didn't think of how dumb that was to say until he said it.

"Flying Nimbus!" Goku jumped on his trusty cloud and took to the skies.

"Bring back that Dragon Ball Goku!" Bulma yelled after her companion.

Goku threw her a peace sign as he flew higher into the sky. He rose at a constant pace until he was directly above the castle. "Naruto, you should come see this! It's huge!"

Naruto's face turned red with anger. "It's not like we all can fly like you!"

Goku snickered. "Going down!" he yelled as he descended into the castle. Big mistake, as the cloud combusted. "Ahhh!" Goku yelled as Nimbus spiraled out of control.

"Goku!" Naruto yelled as he watched the boy fall into a lake. He began to run towards him, but was stopped as he felt something approaching. "Bulma, duck!"

"Wh- eeee!" Bulma ducked just in time to avoid a large ax from decapitating her. The massive weapon lodged itself into a stone structure that was in the front of the duo.

The two slowly turned around and their heart was caught in their throats. They both released a scream as they saw their attacker.

The first thing that caught their attention was the mans size. He was massive, easily towering over the two of them combined. He wore a helmet with horns and goggles and a red cape was draped over his shoulders. On his body was a sleeveless blue battle vest with stars decorating it, and a light blue cloth with a white sash tied into a bow.

He took a slow step towards the two. "What are you two doing here?" he demanded with a booming voice.

Bulma shakily stared at the man. "U-u-us? W-we weren't doing anything!"

Naruto gulped. He refused to be afraid of the man in front of Bulma. "We came here for your Dragon Ball!"

The large man glared at the two. "So you are here to steal the Ox King's treasure!" he yelled, causing a shriek from Bulma. Naruto's body involuntarily began to shake as the man lifted a large fist. "I'll destroy you!"

"Bulma, run!" Naruto yelled as he back flipped away from the attack.

"Gladly!" she yelled as she took off in the direction of Goku's descent. "Goku!" she yelled at the top of her lungs.

The Ox King growled as she looked at Naruto. "You sure are a fast one, you little twerp!" he yelled as he grabbed his ax. "Lets see you move without your legs!"

Naruto jumped into the air as the ax was swung at his lower section. He landed on top of the ax and quickly jumped away as he was swatted at. The Ox King continued to swing non stop at the small boy.

"You can run, little fox, but you can't hide!" The large man swung his ax in a downward motion which Naruto barely dodged and it became stuck into the ground. Naruto landed on his side and slid through th dirt, thankful that the weapon was stuck.

"Now's my chance!" Naruto yelled as he jumped to his feet. He ran up the arm of the giant and kicked him as hard as he could in the stomach. _'Got him!'_ Naruto smirked as he flipped away. He landed clumsily on his feet, and continued to smirk.

The Ox King scratched his belly and chuckled, causing Naruto to groan. How the hell was he supposed to beat the guy?

"You can't beat me, little kid. I trained with the greatest master the world has ever seen!"

Naruto growled. "I bet your Sensei wasn't as great as mine!" he said with a scowl.

"Oh yeah?" The Ox King said with a wide smirk. "I was trained by the great Master Roshi!"

"Pssht that old bag? My master Pervy Sage can totally kick his butt!"

The Ox King growled and stumped his large foot, causing the earth to tremble. "Take that back!" he said with anger.

Naruto stomped his small foot and glared right back at the giant, not giving an inch. "Make me, you big creepy cave man!"

The massive man began to shake with anger. He refused to let this little boy disrespect him and his master. "I'll crush you!"

"Power pole extend!" Naruto sighed with relief as he saw Goku land next to him. Although he hated to admit it, he knew that he needed Goku's help to finish this guy.

Goku crouched into his fighting stance and smirked at the giant. "You're big, but I can beat you!" he said with confidence.

"You aren't scared?" the Ox King said with surprise.

Goku shook his head vigorously. "My grandpa taught me how to be fearless so I'm not scared."

"Well your grandpa never met me!" The Ox king ran towards Goku, swinging his ax. The young boy jumped away while giggling. 

"You're too slow!" he said while he continued to laugh.

"Why you little-"

"Hiya!" Naruto smirked as he landed a square kick into the back of the giants head. He didn't expect the man to turn around with such speed.

"Gotcha!" the giant yelled as he gripped Naruto with both hands. He snickered as he stared at the small child in his hands.

"Let me go, you freak!" Naruto yelled in anger.

"Leave Naruto alone!" Goku yelled.

"Stay back, or I'll squeeze the life out of him!" the Ox King said with a smirk. He smiled as he added pressure, causing Naruto to whimper in pain.

Goku grit his teeth in anger. He wanted to beat the big man, but he couldn't take his friend being hurt because of him. He slowly returned his pole to his back.

"That's better. Now, turn around!"

"Don't do it Go-ARGH!"

Goku cringed as he saw his friend getting crushed. The loud chuckling of the giant only made him shiver even more.

"Fine!" Goku shut his eyes and turned his back to the giant "Just stop hurting my friend!"

"Ho ho ho, you are a smart young one!" The massive man couldn't help but chuckle as he approached the miniature tailed punk. He was going to teach them that you never steal from the Ox King! The man jumped forward in a flash and kicked the young Goku hard in his back.

Goku couldn't help but scream as he tumbled forward from the impact. He continued to yell as he felt his skin and clothing being torn apart from the ground. As his body came to a halt on his back, he saw the large figure directly above him. The young boy couldn't even scream as he felt the air being knocked out of him. Tears streamed down his face as he felt the continued weight of the man on top of him. He looked to Naruto and saw his eyes wide in shock. His mouth was covered by the large man, but he could see that he was still fighting to get free.

The Ox King couldn't help but to laugh heartily. "This is what you get, fool!" He jumped into the air at least fifty feet off of the ground and landed back on top of the faint boy. "This is going to be fun!"

XxxoxxX

Neji was training with Tenten. He was rather annoyed that she would challenge him, but he figured that it was at least nice to have someone to take his mind off of everything.

Neji ducked and avoided a swipe of a sword and quickly jumped into the air to dodge a barrage of kunai. He didn't expect them to be full of explosives and had to shield himself with his arms as the blast blew him back. The boy caught himself and slid a couple of feet back.

Tenten looked at he partner. She could tell that he was conflicted, but she didn't want to bother him about it. She instead smirked at the teen. "Hey Neji, it looks like I'm catching up to you!"

Neji snorted. He couldn't believe that his weak ally thought that she could compete with him in combat. He decided that it was time to end this spar, in case she got too cocky. "I wanted to see if you were capable of the title of my rival. Apparently, I must end this as you have failed to impress me."

Tenten grit her teeth as she clutched onto her favorite scroll. She hated his arrogance, and she felt like it was time to show him that he wasn't as good as he thought he was. Although she knew that she probably wouldn't win this, even leaving a decent sized scar would please her. "Then take this!"

Guy watched on at his two remaining pupils duked it out. He was mostly worried about Neji. Neji was in danger, and it had nothing to do with this fight.

He could see that something has been on the boy's mind. Ever since the tournament he has been more distant from his allies, which is a Hell of an accomplishment for the boy. He only showed up to train and left as soon as it was over. He couldn't even begin to explain how rough he was treating Tenten.

The spars were always ruthless. At first he restrained from hurting her, but now he goes all out from start to finish. In their last spar a week ago Tenten had to be taken to the hospital to recover from a palm attack to her arms. Guy had to carry her there, because she didn't want to be around Neji. This was a grudge match of redemption for Tenten. She was honestly doing good, but he could tell that Neji was through holding back on her.

Neji swiftly ran at Tenten. "Twin Rising Dragons!" the bunned girl yelled as she swiped a large scroll in her opponents direction.

Neji grit his teeth. With that many weapons, he would definitely get hit numerous times. He quickly stopped moving and began swinging his hands to deflect the projectiles. He was being successful, but he was still getting pierced by many of the blades.

_'It looks like I have to use it!' _ Neji grunted with frustration. He didn't want to show off his trump card for these two, it wasn't even legal that he knew the attack. He was, however, quickly being covered by the many projectiles.

Just as the boy began to gather chakra into all of his pores, he felt something grabbing him. Neji was shocked at how fast he was moving. As his body came to a stop, he saw that he was standing a few feet out of the range of the attacks. He looked into the eyes of a smirking Tenten.

Tenten was huffing for breath. It caused her a lot of chakra to flow out the weapons for that long, but all she could do was smile. "I win," she said triumphantly.

Neji glared at Tenten. How dare she claim that she won a fight that was not over. "The battle has just begu-"

"Neji, you lost."

Neji looked into the eyes of his sensei. Anger overcame him once more. "Why did you intervene? I was going to win!"

Guy smiled brightly at the scowling boy. "Neji, it was a very youthful battle. I've never been more happy to see you're flames shine so brightly, however," Guy looked towards Tenten and smirked, "it looks like your flames were dampened first this time."

Neji felt unbridled rage beginning to form in his heart. He knew that he was going to win this fight, but his crazy Sensei had to ruin it for him. Neji snatched his arm out of Guy's hand. "I'm leaving."

Guy nodded to the boy. "I suppose it is time to call it a day. All of this youthful training has my stomach ready to indulge in some delicious meals!" he looked towards Tenten and gave her a thumbs up. "Congratulations," he said once more. "You all are dismissed."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Neji took off. He was happy to get away from that humiliating defeat. There was only one thing that he could think of the entire way home.

He needed strength, and he knew just how to get it.

XxxoxxX

"Is this hot enough Yamcha?" Yamcha covered his face as Puar turned into a woman again. The problem was the same as it was for the last fifty times, she was short, fat, and ugly.

"No, Puar. I'm starting to think that we need another plan."

The blue cat returned to her original form and sulked. She was trying so hard and failing miserably at it. "I'm sorry, Yamcha."

The bandit smirked. "It's not your fault, buddy. I don't blame you one bit." He began to rub his chin. "Now where will I find a hottie in this area..."

"Aaaah! Aaaah!" Yamcha slightly turned as he heard a female's voice. As the figure got closer, he realized that she was being chased by a giant purple T Rex. His first thought was to save her, until he saw her turn around and throw a bade off of her helmet at it. The pair could only look on in amazement as it cut the creatures head off and returned to her helmet.

The girl was wearing a pink helm with pink shoes and gloves. Her only source of clothing looked to be a bikini that was blue. Even though she was cute, she was too young for Yamcha to get nervous about.

"Aaaah! Gross, look at what I've done! I chopped his head right off!" The girl put her pointer and middle finger of each hand to her head and released a wave that completely obliterated the creature.

Yamcha stared on wide eyed. He was both amazed and shocked at the scene. "Now I've seen it all," he said.

"I don't even think she had her eyes open!" Puar yelled nervously.

The girl continued to cry as she ran towards the two. When she was close enough, she stopped and looked at the two.

Yamcha dumbly stared back at the girl. "Uh... hi?" he said nervously. "Nice work!"

The girl nervously reached for her helmet. "I was told to never talk to strangers," she said as she prepared to fire a beam at them. Yamcha quickly grabbed her hands.

"I'm not a bad guy! I promise!" his eyes were pleading for her to believe him. He rally didn't think he could survive that beam! "I'm just a traveling roads man and this is my normal cat, Mr. Mittens." Puar glared at Yamcha. He then saw him pleading with his eyes, so he fell to the ground and began to meow. "her kittens were stolen and I'm trying to get them back!"

The girl covered her mouth in disbelief. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be separated from her father. "That's horrible!"

Yamcha continued his charade. "I know, and Ms. Mittens has been grieving ever since. She won't even eat!"

The girl looked towards the two with suspicion. "How do I know you aren't tricking me?"

Yamcha grabbed Puar and pushed her into the girls face. "Does this look like the face of a liar?"

Puar stared at the girl with a pleading look. She was very great at acting, it was her minor in college.

"No, it doesn't." The girl started petting the kitten, and smiled as it purred. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Yamcha smiled inside his mind. _'Gotcha,' _he said as he looked at the girl. "No, I couldn't drag you into this..."

The girl quickly jumped into his face. "No, I insist!" she held her hand out to Yamcha. "I'm Chi-Chi by the way!"

Yamcha smirked at the little girl. "And I'm Yamcha," he shook her hand, and noticed her began to blush. "I know where the guys that took the kittens are. I just need you to distract them while I get the babies. Is that fine?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "What do I have to do?"

Yamcha fought to keep himself from laughing. "Just flirt with them."

Chi-Chi's eyes exploded out of her head. Her face became blood red. "F-f-f-f-flirt with them? But I don't know how to do that. I've never had a boyfriend before."

"That's fine, just talk to them. It shouldn't take me long to get the balls- er, the babies." Yamcha was kicking himself for his own slip up.

Chi-Chi began shuffling from foot to foot. She wondered what her dad would say about this? He would probably get upset, but then calm down once she told him the reason. Chi-Chi firmly nodded. "I will get your babies back, Mr. Mittens!" she said with determination.

XxxoxxX

Power Levels

Goku: 9 (with weights)

Naruto: 5(with weights)

Bulma: 3

Yamcha: 9

Tenten: 13

Neji: 16

Guy: 54

Chi-Chi: 5

Ox King: 100


	13. Chapter 13

The Kamehameha Wave

"This is just great!" Yamcha and Puar were hiding behind a rock that was conveniently placed beside the vehicle that his target was standing in front of. Chi Chi looked extremely nervous, but he didn't care. All he wanted was his wish.

"Hey Yamcha," Puar asked, "how come you aren't scared of Chi Chi? She is a girl, and is pretty too."

Yamcha scoffed. "I'm only scared of girls my age. She's nothing more than a pawn too me."

"Oh." Puar turned back towards the girl. She looked like she was having an internal conflict. Her hand was positioned in front of the door, almost as if she was afraid to knock.

"Knock on the door already!" Yamcha yelled in irritation. Chi Chi jumped into the door, causing a loud bang. She looked back at the two with a mortified expression.

"Whose there?" In an instant the door was sprung open. Chi Chi crouched and covered her head with a shriek. She noticed the sent of Sake on his breath an instantly evaluated that he was much to old for her.

"Was that a girl?" Jiraiya was quickly shoved back into the vehicle as a shirtless Master Roshi took his spot. He cleared his throat as he leaned in to get a better look.

Chi Chi peeked through her fingers and saw the old shirtless man and she shuddered. She was much too young to be involved in something of this caliber. She inhaled deeply and straightened herself. A promise was a promise, and she had to make sure the little kittens were safe. She had a soft spot for baby animals.

"H-hello, boys," she said with a shaky voice. She grimaced as the older man began to chuckle creepily. Chi Chi gulped as she twiddled with her fingers while shifting from foot to foot.

Master Roshi continued to snicker. He reached his hand out to the girl. "Do you wanna come in?"

Chi Chi's heart skipped a beat. She stared into the man's creepy face and it sent shivers down her spine. She subconsciously took a step back from the vehicle.

"That's enough, you horny old dog," Jiraiya said as he pushed the old man back into the vehicle, ignoring his shouts of protest. He stepped outside and looked the girl up and down. Something about her was extremely familiar, he just couldn't put his finger on it. "Would you be more comfortable if we came out here?"

Yamcha couldn't help but chuckle from his position. Things were going perfectly! He looked to Puar and he nodded and quickly turned into a fly.

Chi Chi nodded to the man. She couldn't understand why she felt so comfortable around him, her father told her to never speak to strangers She turned and walked away with two men tailing her, one snickering uncontrollably and the other gazing her with interest.

After the two were a good distance from the vehicle, she looked towards Yamcha. The man smirked and nodded at her. Chi Chi looked back at the men, then her eyes fell to the ground.

Jiraiya remained silent. "Well?" he asked after a pause.

Chi Chi shakily dug into a pink pouch on her waist. Jiraiya tensed, expecting the girl to grab a weapon. He was surprised to see her remove a small blue tube.

Jiraiya raised his eyebrows in curiosity The girl held the bottle out towards the men, her eyes clenched shut. "Would you rub this on my back? Please?"

Roshi fell backwards with a trail of blood spewing from his nose. Jiraiya looked at the terrified girl. He had to admit she was pretty, but he liked his woman... well, _woman._

Chi Chi was shocked as she felt a pair of hands on hers. She opened her eyes and saw the younger of the old men looking at her, causing her to blush. She was slightly shocked as they began to tighten.

"I'm going to ask you some question's, and it'll be in your best interests not to lie to me, OK?" Chi Chi nodded through tears as she looked at the man. Although he was calm, she could hear the seriousness in his tone.

"First off," Chi Chi's eyes quickly widened as she heard a yell. Behind the man she was shocked to see a twin of his walking out of the RV. The most surprising part, however was that he was carrying the two that she met before, both unconscious The copy dropped them off beside the group of three and disappeared in a pop. "Why are you with these two?"

Chi Chi trembled even harder. Maybe Yamcha was right, these were bad men! "They-they said that you st-stole the k-k-kittens!"

Jiraiya's eyebrow rose. That was definitely not the answer he expected. He sighed. "You do know that this is a highly wanted criminal, right?"

Chi Chi couldn't believe what the man was saying. She tried to wrench her hands free of the man's grip but he was just too strong. "Don't lie to me! I know that you two are the bad ones! Let me go or I'll...I'll tell my daddy!"

Jiraiya shook his head. He really didn't want things to go this way. He let go of the girl, and her momentum caused her to tumble backwards and land hard on her bottom.

Chi Chi stood up and gripped her helmet. Jiraiya was surprised as the blade flew out, but he easily side stepped it. He was shocked however as he felt energy gathering behind him.

"Ha!" At the last second Jiraiya jumped to dodge a wave of energy being shot from her helmet. He dodged again and again as she continued to fire.

"Damn it girl, I'm not trying to hurt you!" he yelled as he narrowly dodged another. He heard the sound of wind rushing behind him a second too late and was struck in the thigh by the blade, causing him to yell and fall to the ground. As he landed again, he saw her charging another wave. Jiraiya tried to stand, but grimaced as pain shot up his body. "Damn it. If I would've died by a girl, I thought it would be Tsunade."

"Jiraiya! Master Roshi!"

"Master Roshi?" the energy the girl was gathering quickly sizzled away. The two conscious members looked to the north and saw a motor scooter quickly approaching. Jiraiya couldn't help but smile as he saw the girl.

Bulma quickly pulled up beside the group. She quickly took in the scene and shook it off. "Jiraiya! Hey, what happened to Master Roshi?" she asked as she saw him laid out in a pool of blood. "And why's Yamcha here?" It was then that she noticed Jiraiya's leg. "OH KAMI WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR LEG!?" Chi Chi couldn't help but blush as she rubbed her foot in the sand.

Jiraiya looked between the two girls. "Long story," he mumbled

Bulma shook her head. "Goku and Naruto are getting beat up by a giant! They need your help!"

The old unconscious man groaned as he slowly sat up. He looked at the scene before him with little interest. He then turned back to Chi Chi. "Do ya still need that lotion?" he asked with a smile.

Chi Chi's head sprung up at this. "M-Master Roshi! My dad told me to get Master Roshi!" she quickly ran to the man's side and gripped his shoulders, shaking him vigorously

"Alright already! I'm here so I'll help ya!" the man said as he shook his head. He slowly sat up and rubbed his head. "Where do you live?"

"That way!" she pointed in the direction Bulma just came from.

Bulma decided now was a good time to interrupt. "Are you forgetting about your two students?"

Jiraiya groaned. "They're obviously in the same direction."

"Oh yeah," Bulma said. She turned and ran to the vehicle. "Load up! We don't have any time to waste!"

Chi Chi saw Jiraiya struggling to stand and quickly ran to help him. "I'm sorry," she said softly, but he shrugged it off with a smile.

"I've dealt with worse than this by my own teammates. Don't beat yourself up for it." He grimaced as he landed too hard on the hurt leg." He created four clones, one grabbed both of his captures and the other two helped him to walk. "Let's just hope we make it in time to save my boys."

XxxoxxX

"So, you've decided that you want more power?"

Neji was kneeling at the feet of the mysterious man he met before. He was anxious and desperate so kneeling before him didn't faze him one bit.

Besides, fate made him kneel before others an immeasurable amount of times already.

"Yes. Please, teach me to be strong."

The man smiled as he looked Neji up and down. He would never understand Orochimaru's interest in the Uchiha, the Hyuuga were much more powerful. Besides, they were all destroyed by a single member of their clan. It was no way that they were as strong as they boasted to be.

"Good." The man walked towards Neji and put a hand on his shoulder. "But first, you must prove to me your worth."

Neji gripped his pants leg. He was tired of proving himself, his name was already well known amongst his peers. He was fine with it, however. He never failed at anything in his life.

"Anything, Sensei."

"Don't regret those words, boy." Neji flinched at the coldness in the mans tone. The air around the two seemed to get colder, and he couldn't help but notice a cold breeze that blew his hair into his face.

The man continued to smile. Everything was playing into his palms perfectly. He figured that it would take some work on his part, but the boy was far too gone already.

"Destroy the Uchiha."

Neji grit his teeth. He felt disrespected by the mission that he was given. He rose his head and glared at the smirking figure before him. "Do you feel that I would lose to the boy? Have you no faith in my skills?" He rose to his feet, still glaring at the man as he lowered into his stance. "I would be more than happy to show you how foolish of a claim that would be."

"Down, boy!" Neji was startled by the outburst. He felt an enormous wave of killer intent flowing from him, even more than when he faced Hiashi. He slowly lowered his gaze to the ground and fell back down to one knee.

"Heh, that's better." The man snickered at his obedient pet. This will be a valuable asset to his team. "I do not doubt your strength I don't want you to just win, I want you to beat him until his miserable life is on the line. Then, once you succeed in that, beat him some more." The mans calm demeanor was quickly evaporating as he continued to speak. "Make him beg for mercy, while his blood drips from your palms. And when he begs, rip his eyes out of his socket!" The man was gasping for breath out of his rant.

Neji shivered on the ground. He didn't have any personal grudge against Sasuke, he was better than the boy and everyone knew it. He was looking forward to his match with the boy but now, he was dreaming of it. He couldn't help but smirk as he thought about it. "It will be done."

"Oh, I know." The man slowly began levitating, his eyes lowered at the boy still on the ground. "For if you don't, then I will personally kill you."

XxxoxxX

Naruto struggled to free himself from the giants grasp. The large man was sitting on the small frame of Goku, laughing as the boy squirmed beneath him.

"Hahahaha! What's the matter? Is the smoke stopping you from breathing?" the man laughed again at his joke.

Naruto cursed himself. This moment he really wished that he could used a substitution jutsu! If only he paid attention in Iruka sensei's class!

The giant seemed to get tired of the boy under him. "Hmm, I'm hungry." He looked at Naruto with a smile. "Unfortunately for you, I _really _enjoy cats for breakfast."

Naruto's eyes widened at the statement. He squirmed like he never did before to get loose, but to no avail. The man merely snickered as he watched the boy in his hand. He tossed Naruto into the air and opened his mouth wide.

"Shadow clone Jutsu!" Naruto used the opportunity to create as much clones as he could, which was only twenty, he didn't realize how much chakra he expended struggling. The giant growled as he reached for one, only for it to burst into smoke. All of the clones scrambled away and circled the man, glaring at him.

The Ox King chuckled. "Just because there's more of you don't mean that I won't eat you. In fact," he reached down and picked up his ax, "I can use the workout before I eat." The man rose to his feet and twirled his weapon, looking around at the clones.

"Just because you're bigger than me don't mean your stronger!" Each clone grabbed a kunai and ran at the massive figure. The man simply smirked at them.

"Wind style! Great Vortex Jutsu!" The beast swung at an extremely rapid pace, destroying each of the clones as the sound of metal hitting metal ensued. As he slowed down, he swung the ax one more time to clear the air of the smoke that appeared from the clones dispersing. He saw a single Naruto laying in a pile of bricks in front of him. He slowly chuckled as he took slow steps towards the frightened boy. "And then there was one."

Naruto glared at the man as he struggled to catch his breath. This had to be the true definition of a nightmare, but he continued to smirk. As each step got closer, his smirk turned into a chuckle and then a laugh.

The Ox King glared down at the boy. He didn't like being laughed at, but it was common to see his foes go hysterical before their death. "You finally lost it, eh?" he asked with a smirk.

Naruto's laugh continued as he fearlessly glared at his opponent. "Me, lost it? Nah, I think if anyone lost something it's you." He laughed even harder as he saw the confused expression on the man's face.

"Do you take me for a joke?" The Ox King roughly grasped Naruto by the chest, prepared to end his miserable life. He was surprised however as the boy burst into smoke. "Huh?" he turned and saw the blonde boy with his tailed friend's arm wrapped around his neck, holding him up. The most surprising part was that the monkey boy was still conscious,even if barely. The King growled at the boy. "You DARE make a fool out of ME?" The giant man began to run towards the two, his large ax creating a deep trail in the ground behind him.

Naruto weakly laughed, even though it hurt his side to do so. "Goku?"

Goku continued to stare out of his one open eye at the figure approaching. "Yeah?"

"We're so screwed."

Goku chuckled weakly. "I don't know what that means, but I guess your right."

The large figure was less than twenty feet from the two. They both struggled to stand, and the trembling ground from the large footsteps weren't helping. He cocked his blade back and prepared to end both of the boys with one final swipe. Naruto closed his eyes, prepared to meet his fate.

"Daddy STOP!"

The large figure slid to a halt. His blade was stopped inches from the face of the two boys. They both were breathing hard, both from fatigue and fear.

"Chi Chi?" The man turned around and saw his daughter running towards him, holding onto the hand of a smiling old man. He gripped his ax even harder. "I TOLD you, you are too young for BOYFRIENDS!"

"Is that you, Gyumao?" The large figure dropped his ax. He hadn't heard anyone call his name since his wife passed away after his daughter's birth. He squinted his eyes to get a better look at the man.

"M-master Roshi!" The man took off in a full spring towards the old man. "It's really you!"He fell to his knees in front of the man, which was an amusing sight.

Master Roshi leaned forward and clocked the giant on the head. "Is that how you show respect? Attacking kids to keep your treasure safe?"

Gyumao rubbed the sore spot on his helmet "I'm sorry Master."

"Well you should be. While you were over here being a waste of space, my other student has become an author!"

"A best selling author, actually." Jiraiya corrected as he rode onto the scene with a certain girls scooter. Behind him was a disgruntled Bulma.

Gyumao's face turned into a wide smile. "Jiraiya!" he yelled as he sprinted toward the man.

Jiraiya's face was drained of color. "Oh no-don't do it-stay back-AIIIYYY!" Jiraiya released a high pitched squeal as he was pulled into a deathly bear hug. His hurt leg dangled lifelessly as he was spun around in circles.

"Jiraiya! Jiraiya my brother how I've missed you!" the man danced as he clung onto his longtime friend, Hell his only friend that he had left.

Jiraiya groaned as he fought to free himself. "Missed you two, now can you PLEASE put me down?"

"Oh, sorry hehe." Jiraiya was dropped down onto the ground. A healthy Sannin would've caught himself with ease. An injured one , however fell pitifully onto his back, groaning curses at his friend. Why did all of his friends seem to beat him up?

Chi Chi approached the two young boys that were watching the scene leaning onto each other. They looked pretty beat up. This was the first time she's ever seen people her age before. She began blushing heavily as she got close enough to touch them. Besides, they were kind of cute... OK, _very _cute.

"Hi, I'm Chi Chi!" she said with a wide smile.

Both boys turned to the girl slowly. They didn't even realize her approach, they were still silently celebrating being alive. Goku decided to be the first to speak. "Hi, my names Go-" Goku was cut off as he felt Naruto, the person holding him up, collapse. He followed suit and fell on top of the boy, his head hitting the ground. They both were passed out in seconds.

Chi Chi looked at the boys with a shy smile. "Oh my gosh, I think I like Go!"

XxxoxxX

After an hour of the old guys catching up, the young guys getting patched up, and the tension between the giant and the kids calmed down the matter at hand was finally decided.

"So, you need me to put out the fire?" Master Roshi asked as he rubbed his chin.

"Yeah, I thought that you may have had the Bansho fan with you."

Jiraiya chuckled. "You were using that as a door mat the last time I checked."

Roshi's face burned a bright red. "W-well I don't need no stinkin' fan. I have the greatest weapon on earth right here!" the man pointed to his skinny arms.

"Yeah right," Naruto grumbled to himself. Unfortunately, the old man could hear him.

"I'll show you!" Master Roshi removed his shirt and showed off his slim figure. He flexed his arms and began to power up.

Goku's eyes widened with surprise. "Wow! Look at him!"

Naruto also couldn't believe what he was seeing. The man's body began to expand, his skinny frame quickly bursting with muscles.

Master Roshi put his hands together in a meditative pose. He then pulled them apart and released a growl, his muscles expanding to an unreal size.

"W-what the heck is he?" Bulma asked as she hugged a blushing Naruto.

Jiraiya smirked at the man. "He's my Master."

The old man held one hand forward as he concentrated. White energy began to gather in that hand and travel down towards the rest of his body.

"He's going to do the Kamehameha Wave!" the Ox King yelled in excitement.

"Kaaaaaaaaameeeeeeeehaaaaaaameeeeeee"

Jiraiya grimaced as he saw the amount of energy being gathered. "That's too much old man! Your going to destroy the castle if you keep that up!"

Chi Chi's eyes widened. "No, not the castle!"

A large sphere of white energy began gathering at the mans fingertips to the amazement of everyone watching. After Jiraiya's outburst, they saw it began to shrink to a smaller size.

"Haaaaaa!" a beam of pure white energy shot towards the castle. The large fire began to glow white, and then it slowly disappeared. To everyone's delight, the castle remained standing, but the old man collapsed onto his butt.

"Wow! That was amazing!" both teen boys yelled as they sprung to their feet.

"My castle!" Gyumao ran to his old master and scooped him into a bear hug. "Oh thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!"

"Heh heh no problem! You just have to promise to never hurt anyone again!"

The giant nodded with a goofy grin on his face. "I promise!"

"Good! Now, would you happen to have anything to eat in there? _Someone _refuses to feed me."

Bulma growled. "Well _someone _doesn't understand I'm not on the menu!"

"I was only fooling!"

"I'm only fifteen!"

"Enough!" Jiraiya groaned. The two looked at each other and huffed.

"Of course I'll cook for you! Just let me go and hunt some boar, and I'll be back in a jiffy! Chi Chi, show them around the castle!"

Chi Chi saluted her dad. "You got it Daddy!" She said with a nod.

As the Ox King ran off, both Goku and Naruto ran towards the turtle hermit.

"Can you teach me how to do that?"

"Huh canya?"

"Please?"

Master Roshi nodded to the boys. "Sure, but it'll take you fifty years to learn the Kamehameha Wave."

Naruto groaned. "Fifty years? You'll be dead then, so I won't be able to show it off!"

Goku turned away from Naruto and began to mimic the old man. "Kamehameha!" The group was amazed as a small wave came from the boy's hands.

"No fair! I was gonna do it first!" Naruto copied the same motion. He began to charge energy into his palms. "Kamehameha!" A wave a slight bit smaller than Goku's came out of his hand and broke down a nearby house.

"We did it!" Both boys yelled. They began to dance in celebration while chanting over and over. Bulma decided to break the celebration by grabbing each by the ear. "Yeah, now let's go get that Dragon Ball!"

Jiraiya watched the three walk away, led by Bulma. He was both amazed and proud at his student, and Goku as well. These boys were going to be powerful and he couldn't wait to see it. "Minato, Kushina, he's going to make you proud."

XxxoxxX

Why was the mountain set on fire? What will happen to Yamcha and Puar? How is Sasuke doing? Find out next time on The Z Ninjas!

XxxoxxX

Power Levels

Goku: 9 (with weights)

Naruto: 5 (with weights)

Ox King: 100

XxxoxxX

To the unnamed guest: I'm not necessarily making Naruto weak. In the manga, Naruto really didn't get strong until his training with Jiraiya. Since this is technically that time, he is slowly gaining power. And the reason strong people are in already, well, I want to follow some canon but also keep it original. In other words, since there's new characters the bad guys motives change.

To gamerlover41592: Thanks. A lot. Even though it seems like this story isn't getting any buzz, I want to thank you for being here from the start and still here. I really plan to keep this going until I complete it. I have huge ideas, just please stay for the ride


	14. Loose Canon

Loose Canon

(Yes, it's intentionally spelled wrong)

Sasuke lay on the ground, exhausted beyond belief. Although his training with Kakashi ended hours ago that didn't stop him from doing his own regimen. His eyes burned from the amount of stress he put on the sharingan.

The boy say up panting. He decided that this was enough training for the day, it was beginning to get dark. He slowly rose to his feet, ignoring the pounding in his head and eyes. Sasuke instantly took to the trees towards the dango shop, he was really hungry.

It was only a week until the exams and he was more than excited. He learned a strong jutsu and also drastically improved his movement speed and strength. He was excited to win this, and even more so to see what the dobe learned while training with the Sannin. Regardless, he was more than ready to face any challenger that faced him.

There were only three opponents that had a chance of giving him a problem. Rock Lee was a freak of nature. The boys speed and strength was ridiculous, and he couldn't help but notice that he was holding back in their spar. His training with Kakashi was mainly to prepare himself for the chance at the much anticipated rematch with him.

Sasuke was also concerned about the one called Gaara. The red haired boy held an air of mysteriousness that made him wonder what his true power was. The gourd on his back also made him wonder about the hidden weapons he could be hiding. He would have to remain on his toes for that fight.

And then there was Neji.

Neji didn't win Rookie of the Year off of some fluke. No, the boy was obviously talented. He never saw him fight, but the stories of his ruthlessness was whispered like a ghost story. He heard that on a mission he once beat a shinobi so bad that the man begged for death, but he instead chose to continue to kick him around. Sasuke couldn't help but smile at the thought of that.

The boys sandals clicked lightly as he landed in the front of the shop. He walked in and took a seat in the back, alone from any other customers. He sat patiently, waiting for a waiter to come and take his order.

"Sasuke!" the boy flinched as he heard his name shrieked in the building. He turned and saw a familiar patch of pink hair and couldn't help but groan. Did she not understand that he didn't want her?

"What?" the boy said sternly as she rushed towards him. He couldn't help but notice that trailing her was his classmates Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, as well as a boy that he never met before. The kid had blue clean cut hair and was wearing a brown shirt with black shorts. He noticed the boy Shikamaru sigh and mutter something, and he could tell that it was his signature phrase.

Sakura helped herself to a seat beside the boy, ignoring his glare. "We came to eat, and I guess we'll be eating with you today!" The rest of the group silently took their seat, Choji across from him with Ino to his side while Shikamaru sat beside Sasuke. The new kid looked around nervously, and was quickly pulled onto the floor beside Ino. He was surprised that Ino simply gave him a smile and nothing more. At least _someone_ got the message.

As everyone gathered around Shikamaru decided to be the one to speak. "So, Ino, you said Naruto did what now?" This caught Sasuke's attention and he silently listened.

Ino's eyes widened and a smile crossed her face. "Oh yeah! So we ran into this bandit, I believe his name was Yamcha, and he had a cat-"

"Wait, you mean THE Yamcha?" Sakura asked with a shriek.

Ino nodded. "Yep! And he had a cat with him, named Puar!"

Sakura sighed dreamily. "Is he as hot as they say?"

"No, he's even hotter!" both girls squealed in delight. Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Girls," he mumbled.

"Food!" Choji yelled as the waiter came to their table with a large helping of sticks of dango. As she placed the, he didn't hesitate to dig in.

Shikamaru huffed at that. "Did you guys fight him?If so, I'm sure that must be the reason that Kiba and Hinata are in the hospital."

Ino's eyes lost the excitement. She slowly nodded. "He was so strong. Kiba fought him first, and he was doing a good job. Yamcha's cat then turned into a skunk and shot them with a really smelly gas." Ino's nose scrunched up at the memory. "While their nose were going out of whack, he began to pummel the two. The cat took out Akamaru, and Yamcha beat Kiba to the ground.

Sakura paused from his chewing. "You're telling me that Akamaru was beaten by a cat? That is highly unlikely. A canine is far superior to a feline."

Ino nodded slowly. "The cat became a hammer and knocked him out!"

Choji continued smacking as he spoke. "So, a henging cat? That's not strange at all."

"Maybe he was a summon?" Shikamaru replied with his chin on his hand. "That's the only explanation that I can think of."

"Enough already!" Sakura yelled in annoyance. "What happened next?"

"Oh! Hinata decided to fight him after Kiba was down." The table got really silent at this. Everyone had a soft spot for the shy girl. "She did good for a while, she even hit one of his arms with her Juuken strike, taking it out. But Yamcha was good... really good." Tears began to gather in the girls eyes. Mark put a comforting hand on her shoulder, causing her to smile. "When things were going bad, that's when Goku and Naruto showed up.

Sasuke tensed up at this. He was glaring at Ino, ignoring the pain that his eyes were in. Was this the person that Naruto beat?

"Goku?" Shikamaru asked curiously. "Is that the boy with the tail?"

"Tail?" Sakura was the confused one now. She eyed Ino with one eye brow rose. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah she's sure!" Everyone turned and looked at Mark. This was the first time he spoke since they came, so they were all surprised. "He had a tail, and he was just as ugly as a monkey!"

"What happened with the dobe?" Sasuke asked, irritated with the entire situation.

Ino decided to continue her story. "Well when they came, Goku punched him so hard that he looked like he was going to pass out!" everyone's eyes widened at that. "Then Naruto tried to fight him, but the guy escaped quickly."

Sasuke calmed down. He decided that maybe Kakashi was just messing with him to make him train harder. He'd be sure to punch him extra hard for his betrayal in training.

"And then Kurenai Sensei came back and we went to West City and met Mark and his mom." The table was once again silent. Everyone except Sasuke knew about the untimely death of Kurenai's mother. "While we were recovering in the hospital a man attacked. The creep had mouths on his hands, it was gross! He used them to make bombs!"

Shikamaru shook his head. He was happy that he was exempt from the mission. It sounded like it was much more than he was willing to handle. "Would this man's name happen to be Deidara?"

Ino's eyes widened in realization."Yes! We went to save the people, me,Goku and Naruto, and the guy followed us! Goku decided to handle it while me and Naruto escaped, but it kind of backfired since he still found us. He attempted to kill me, and that's when Naruto snapped."

Sakura's head turned slightly at that. "What do you mean snapped?" Sasuke's hands tightened into a fist.

"He just, I don't know, snapped! He got so powerful that I could SEE his chakra. It formed into a tail, and he began howling and running on all fours like an animal. He became," her eyes lowered to the table. She was looking for the right words to say, but she couldn't think of an appropriate one. "A monster," she lightly added.

Sasuke quickly sprung to his feet, to the surprise of everyone. He turned to walk away, but his wrist was grabbed by Sakura.

"Sasuke? Where are you-"

"I'm leaving!" Sasuke snapped at the girl without looking back. He snatched his wrist from her, resulting in a light yelp.

"B-but-"

"Hey, do you have a problem or somethin'?"

Everyone was shocked to see Mark on his feet, glaring at the Uchiha. Sasuke looked back at the boy, annoyed at his presence.

Mark became bolder and stepped towards Sasuke. "Do you not hear me?" he yelled with fury. At this time, all eyes in the shop were on the two. "We were having a nice conversation and you just gonna walk away like that? Why you gotta be so rude?"

Ino felt the waves of killing intent flowing off of Sasuke. She grabbed Mark's shirt, but he pulled away from her. "Mark, stop-"

"No, he needs to learn his lesson!" Mark was now standing behind the Uchiha now, glaring daggers into his back.

Sasuke chuckled. "And you're going to be the one to teach it to me?" he responded darkly. Shikamaru grimaced as he saw a small spark of purple coming from his neck. He slowly rose to his feet with Choji following suit.

Mark growled. He didn't care if this kid was a ninja, he wouldn't let him disrespect a lady! "You're damn right!" he yelled as he lunged for the boy.

Before he could connect Sasuke turned and grabbed him by the neck, throwing him into the wall with a crash. Sasuke quickly jumped onto him, his hand cocked back to attack. As Mark stared into his eyes, he was frozen. The once black eyes were now a blazing red and spinning madly.

He was terrified.

Sasuke tried to attack the boy, but realized that he was frozen. "Stay out of this, Shikamaru!" he roared at his classmate.

Shikamaru struggled to keep his hold. "Choji, get Mark and get the Hell out of here!" he groaned out as he took a step back, Sasuke following suit. Choji nodded and grabbed the tear stricken Mark, quickly running out with the small boy in his arms.

Shikamaru sighed as he released his hold on the boy. He knew that he was in danger of him turning on him, but he was sure that he could handle himself. Sasuke turned towards the boy and gave him one final glare. He then looked around at the shop: all eyes were on him.

It was then that Sasuke noticed the one pair of eyes that he recognized. His black and red eyes stared into the icy blue of his enemy, the enemy that stared at him with interest. Sasuke grit his teeth and walked out of the shop, sprinting all the way towards his home.

Shikamaru released a sigh as the Sasuke left. He looked towards his two remaining companions. They both looked scared and shocked. "What a drag..."

XxxoxxX

Everyone looked on as Naruto and Goku stuffed their faces with different types of meats that the Ox King hunted. He came back with large deer, Dinosaur, boar , and fish. The food was quickly disappearing, thanks to two growing boys.

"Wow, Goku, you sure can eat!" the Ox King said.

"My grandpa told me the same thing!" Goku said with a wide smile. He grabbed a fried piece of meat and picked it clean in less than a second.

Jiraiya's eyebrow rose. "Who was your grandpa?"

"Grandpa Gohan!" the three older figure's jaws dropped. They didn't know how they didn't piece it together; the outfit, the power pole, even the nice manners. "He was really strong!"

Master Roshi nodded. "I know, I taught him myself."

Goku dropped the bone that he was chewing on. "Really?" he asked with a lot of excitement.

Roshi nodded with a smile. "Yep, him and his son! Ain't that right, Jiraiya?"

All heads turned towards the old man. A slow smile spread across his face as he looked at Goku in a different light. No wonder he was so attached to the kid! He limped over to the boy (Gyumao gave him a cane he took from an old man) and patted him on the shoulder. "How's the old man doing?" he asked with a smirk.

Goku continued staring up at the man. "He's dead."

The room fell completely silent, save for Naruto continuing to munch on his food. Jiraiya's face turned glum. "H-how did he die?"

"Some giant monster killed him one night. I didn't see it. I was sleeping."

Jiraiya winced. His old man most likely died trying to keep it from getting to Goku. He slowly pulled his hand from Goku's shoulder. "I need a minute," he said softly as he hobbled out of the room.

Goku watched the man leave, then continued to eat. Naruto slowly stood to his feet and followed his sensei out the door.

Master Roshi was sad about the situation, but decided that now wasn't the best time to show it. "Say, how did your castle get set on fire anyway?"

The Ox King paused from his chewing. He wiped his mouth with his massive arm. "Hey, Chi Chi? Why don't you and Goku go and find out what Bulma's up too."

"OK daddy!" Chi Chi said with a smile. She grabbed Goku's hand and took off with him deeper into the castle.

As the two watched her disappear, the large man sighed. "Well, it happened shortly after Chi Chi was born."

XxxoxxX

_The Ox King was outside, playing with his two year old daughter. He was a normal sized man, and was playing a game of hide and seek. Chi Chi was sitting in the middle of the field, covering her eyes._

"_Where's Chi Chi? I can't seem to find her anywhere!" he said with a grin. "Hey, Mr. Bird! Have you seen Chi Chi?" The small creature looked at the man and took off in a panicked scramble. "Chi Chi!" he called to no one in particular._

_The man turned his back to his daughter, and was surprised to see a masked man in the front of him. "Who are you?" he asked the figure. The man wore a long black good with chains falling from the sleeve. His mask was orange with black stripes going across. As well as a hole on the right side for the eye. _

_"Where's Urya?" the figure calmly asked. The Ox King grimaced at this question. It still hurt to have his dead wife brought up. _

"_I'm afraid she isn't with us anymore," he said sadly. This was still a sore subject to him. "Now again, who are you?"_

_The man cracked his chain into the ground, leaving a large gash. "where is she!?"_

_Gyumao looked over his shoulder. He saw that Chi Chi was peeking at him, but began giggling and covered her face once again. "She died, giving birth to our child. Now can you please leave us? I'm trying to play with my daughter." Gyumao turned back towards the man and saw that he was no longer there. The parent in him panicked and he turned back towards his daughter. He froze as he saw the man tickling the giggling girl with one hand. "Get away from her!" he yelled in panic as he sprinted towards them._

"_Uh uh uh," the man raised his other hand and revealed a kunai. Gyumao froze as he lowered it towards the girl. "We don't want any accidents, do we?" he said as he stroked the girls hair, eyes trained on the father._

"_Please, I'd do anything!" _

"_Is that so?" the man rubbed the girls face. She looked at her dad with a smile. _

"_Daddy! I like Unco Mask!" the girl said with a smile._

_Gyumao fell to his knees. "Please! She's all I have left!"_

"_Then you will do as I say." The man lifted the girl up, and she wrapped around his neck, nuzzling her face into his coat. "I will take the girl, but I promise-"_

"_You can't take her!" he yelled with both fear and fury. Tears began to stream down his face._

_The man chuckled. "I wasn't asking for your permission."_

_The two stared each other down. Gyumao wanted to rush him and destroy the man, but he didn't want any harm to happen to his girl. After a pregnant pause, Gyumao fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face._

_Chi Chi looked at her father, and became concerned. "Daddy? You cuwyin?"_

"_Please, she's all I have left..."_

"_And I need her. If you attempt to interfere, you will die."_

_Chi Chi didn't know what the man was saying, but she wanted her Father. She squirmed to get away, but the man tightened his grip. Tears began to form at her eyes. "Daddy? Daddy!" she screamed._

"_Kamehameha!" _

_The masked man was hit forcefully in the back, causing him to fly forward. Chi Chi was sent screaming, flailing wildly in the air. "Daddy!"_

"_Kyojin! Saisho no Keishiki Jutsu!" Gyumao expanded rapidly in size, stretching up to eight feet tall. He jumped and grabbed his daughter, hugging her tightly. He smiled as he saw his savior._

"_Gohan!"_

_The old man quickly landed beside his friend."Don't drop your guard, he's still around here somewhere!"_

_Gyumao nodded. He refused to release his crying daughter, however. He continued to look around, but couldn't see the man anywhere._

"_Gohan and Gyumao. It seems I am outmatched." They looked towards the castle and saw the man sitting on the wall. He was glaring at the two, and they matched his._

"_What kind of sick creature are you? Trying to kidnap children!" _

"_It matters not." The man quickly went through hand seals. " Katon! Shinpi-tekina hono Jutsu!" The man breathed a long stream of fire into the building to the shock of the old men. The flame seemed to consume the entire place in seconds!_

"_My castle!" Gyumao yelled. He was shocked to see his entire place on fire, with the masked man disappearing in a spiral. The last thing left was his glaring eye, yet they could still hear him. _

"_I will be back, and I will have what I desire."_

XxxoxxX

"And that's what happened." The Ox King always got emotional when he thought of that night. He nearly lost his daughter to that masked man. He was glad that his friend was there to save her.

"Don't beat yourself up for it. She's alive and well, and your a great father no less!"

The large man smiled. "That's why I don't trust her around strangers. I'm glad that he hasn't returned yet, but I have a feeling that one day he will."

Master Roshi frowned. He wasn't good at comforting men, but this was like a son to him. He put his hand on the man's shoulder. "I bet that when he does come, we'll be able to handle him! Just leave that up to me!"

XxxoxxX

And that's that! I kind of wrote this just because I was in the mood. I figured since my last chapter got so much attention, as well as a pretty harsh flame, that I kind of owed you guys another chapter. This isn't much action anyways, so I wouldn't want you to wait weeks on it. Thanks again to gamerlover41592, and also thanks to NinjaFang1331 for your review. You guys are much appreciated!

_Kyojin! Saisho no Keishiki Jutsu!- Giant: First form Jutsu_

_Katon! Shinpi-tekina hono Jutsu!- Fire style: Mystic flames jutsu_


	15. Monkeying Around!

The moon shone brightly above in the night sky. A large beautiful castle could be seen in the light cast by the glowing sphere. Inside the house an S ranked mission was being taken place.

A short creature was standing with his back to the wall. His face showed pure fear and rage as he glared at his two attackers. Beads of sweat flew off in waves as his body was shaking from the killing intent sent from the duo.

The first was a tall tan man. He was a very muscular figure, wearing a white hood and black mask that only displayed his oddly colored green and red eyes.

The other was a noticeably younger man. His skin was extremely fair, and his head was full of slicked black grey hair. His purple eyes gazed at the smaller being maniacally, seeming to beg for his blood.

The taller took a step towards the midget creature, glaring menacingly at him. "Show me where the money is," he demanded the terrified being.

The younger man rolled his eyes. "What the fuck, Kakuzu, we're here for the dragonballs, not some wad of cash! Besides," he licked the blade of his scythe, a long trail of blood smearing on his tongue, "Jashin hasn't had its fill!"

Kakuzu glanced back at his companion, sending him a killer intent that would cripple most jonin. His partner merely smirked. "Wouldn't it be nice if you could kill me?" He then burst into maniacal laughter.

Kakuzu turned back to the small shivering figure. In a flash his arm stretched and his hand wrapped around the creatures neck, instantly retracting back to its normal length. He pulled the snarling creature eye to eye with him and glared. "Where is it?" he hissed angrily.

The small emperor tried to struggle out of the grip, knowing that it was pointless. If only he'd hired that Zabuza guy to protect him! He could only mentally scold himself, knowing that his own stupidity would be the death of him. He looked to the left and saw the bodies of his two most loyal subordinates, Shu and Mai.

The carnage was brutal. The dog-man's nose was ripped off. His fingers were bent back at intervals that no being should ever have to experience. Each leg had stab wounds that were leaking his life's essence.

Mai was even worse. If Pilaf hadn't seen the way she was murdered, he wouldnt have known it was her. Each of the ladies limbs were missing, as well as her eyes. The skin was peeled off of her skull and he could already see flies beginning to leave their seeds on the corpses.

Pilaf turned back to hi captor. He was shaken as too what to do. If he didn't tell them, he would die. If he did tell them, he would die. He knew the way it worked, considering the amount of hits he put out on others. "I-I-I-"

"-wrong answer!"

"GYAAAAAUUUUGHHH!" The monster released a glass shatttering scream as his arm fell from his body. Out of instinct he glanced to where his limb used to be and nearly fainted. The cut wasn't even clean, the blade left a jagged tear in his shoulder that was sickening to the eye.

Kakuzu turned toward his teammate and glared. The man simply shrugged.

"The fucker wasn't speaking anyway," he said with a smirk.

Pilaf would have lost consciousness if it weren't for the man forcibly shaking him. "Where's the money?"

"In the-the glass room..." he said weakily. The loss of blood had his eyes drooping over.

"Great," Hidan replied. "And where's the ball?"

"S-s-same spot..." The man's form went limp in the large man's hand. Kakuzu tossed him to the ground lightly.

"Hidan, go retrieve them," Kakuzu growled at the man.

Hidan glared back. "Do I look like your fucking slave!"

"I'm going to keep him alive, in case he's lying to us!" Hidan's glare remained, resulting in the older shinobi sighing. "You can use your ritual once this is over."

Hidan's smile broadened. "Alright!" he yelled as he turned out of the room. He loved negotiationing with his partner. He always tended to win.

Kakuzu could only rub his hands in anticipation. He was aware that Pilaf was one of the richest beings, and this mission could prove to be fruitful. Although it was his top priority, he could give a damn about that dragonball.

If he were to find one, however, he'd probably sell it.

XxxoxxX

A few miles from Pilaf's castle was a golden bird building its nest. The bird was rather large, easily towering over a vehicle.

Inside the nest was a collection of golden eggs. Each egg was circular in shape with speckles on them.

The one egg that stood out the most, however, had one golden star plastered in the middle.

XxxoxxX

The great castle of the Ox King was beautiful to look at. The Stars filling the night sky added to the beauty, reflecting off of the castle walls causing it to appear to shine. Through all the beauty however sat a lone figure.

Jiraiya sadly looked to the sky. As he sat, he could only feel sad at the fact that his father was gone. To make matters worse, he hadn't seen the man in over a decade. Not that they didn't speak, he just was always so busy. The most communication they did was through carrier pigeons.

Jiraiya felt guilty that he couldn't put two and two together. The pole, the uniform, even the fighting stance was identical to his father. He heard through letters that the man was raising a child, but he never had the time to make a visit to meet his pseudo brother.

Gohan was an extremely supportive father. The man read every book that Jiraiya ever created. He was a huge fan of the first, but he also liked the sequels. Jiraiya could only smirk as he imagined the perverted man reading his newest material.

He released a labored sigh. The man always wanted grandkids, but he was never given them thanks to Jiraiya's fear of commitment. Jiraiya was aware of how lonely it could get in the area that they lived but he didn't want to rush a child just yet. He would have to thank Goku for giving the man some attention.

Jiraiya felt as though he betrayed his father. Although he was a well respected author, as well as one of the most powerful shinobi this world has ever known, he had absolutely nothing to show for it. No legacy to leave for his father after he would ultimately perish.

Jiraiya was pulled from his thoughts as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked and saw Naruto, gazing at him with concern. Jiraiya gave the child a weak smile.

"Hey gaki," he said, terribly attempting to put on a normal face. "Came to gaze at the stars with me?"

Naruto gave the man a smile back. "Nope. Just came to make sure that you were ok." He jumped onto the balcony that his sensei was leaning on. "How are you doing?"

Jiraiya sighed. In the few weeks that he knew the child, he really grew fond of the boy. "I'm doing fine. Just a little shocked, ya know?" He turned his gaze back to the sky. "Never thought my father could ever die. He seemed invincible, at least to me."

Naruto nodded. It made him think of his reaction if his Jiji ever were to die. Growing up an orphan always made the boy wonder about who his parents were. Did they care for him? Which one did he look like? These thoughts always went through his mind. He forced back a tear that threatened to fall when he had these thoughts.

"At least you got a chance to meet your dad..."

Jiraiya flinched at this. He looked towards his student and saw the tell tale signs of a depressed child. Although it was rare to see this in the boys eyes, his mask of happiness would crack on occasion.

It also made Jiraiya feel stupid. Here he was, moping around when the kid was through worse than he had ever been. As he stared at the shaking child, he couldn't help but feel guilty at bringing these unwarranted emotions inside of him.

As if on instinct, the man hobbled towards the gaki and ruffled his hair. Naruto looked up at him with wet eyes, curiously looking at his sensei.

Jiraiya grinned like he usually did. "Cheer up, kid. You have me, the great Jiraiya!" The man went to do his pose, but quickly began jumping in pain from his hurt leg.

Naruto snickered at this. "And you don't have to be so sad! At least you'll have something to brag to the your father about when you meet him in Otherworld!"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow at this. "Oh yeah? And what is that?"

The hyperactive genin jumped onto the ruling that he was previously sitting on, thrusting a thumb into his own chest. "You raised the greatest shinobi to ever live!"

Jiraiya gazed at the boy with a renewed respect for him. As he stood there with that grin, he could only think of the Yondaime's declaration to become the Hokage. He smiled at the blonde in a strange feeling of déjà vu.

"You're right, kid. I did raise the greatest shinobi to ever live." He couldn't help but snicker as the boys smile widened. "The Fourth Hokage!"

"Hey!" the blonde angrily yelled as his sensei fell onto the floor in laughter.

XxxoxxX

Chi-Chi was laying on the couch, feet kicking the air behind her. She was focusing fiercely on her young boy was currently doing katas with his power pole, viciously beating down an imaginary opponent. The boy was swinging viciously and expertly.

"Watcha doooooin'?" she asked the boy as he continued to swing his weapon.

"I'm practicing," Goku replied without looking in her direction. He ducked an imaginary kick and thrust his pole through the chest of an attacker.

"Oooooooh." Chi-Chi continued staring at him. She couldn't help but to notice his young physical features. He was chubby yet muscular, something that she thought was cute.

"Are you a ninja or something?"

Goku looked at the girl with a smile, his pole still thrust out ahead of him. "Nope. I'm a martial artist!"

"Me too!" Chi-Chi said as she jumped to her feet.

Goku cocked his head at her, reminding the girl of a confused dog. "I didn't know girls could be strong."

The girls face turned red. "Of course I'm strong! How rude of you to say that!"

Goku began to smile wide. "Do you wanna spar with me?"

Chi-Chi turned even more red at the question. She began shuffling from foot to foot, twiddling her fingers together.

"If you really want to," she said with a smile.

Goku's smile grew even larger as he flipped in the air whilst celebrating. He placed his pole back onto his back as he lowered into a fighting stance. "You can go first if you want," he said with a playful grin.

Chi-Chi lowered into her own stance. "If you want!" The girl burst forward in a surprising amount of speed.

The boy grinned as the girl approached. He saw her rear back a punch and quickly ducked, resulting in her sailing over him.

Goku quickly jumped up from his position and aimed a punch at the girls abdomen. As he quickly closed the distance, he lightly tapped the girls stomach.

"I win!" he yelled as he fell to the ground.

Chi Chi landed back on her feet and rubbed her stomach. Although the boy barely tapped it she could feel a light soreness.

"Yeah, you did!" She could only think of how quickly it ended. She had really been slack in her training. She gave the boy a forced smile.

She was the daughter of the great Ox King for Kami's sake! How could one of the most feared beings on the planet have a daughter that could lose so easily?

As the girl thought, her mind was focused on one thing and one thing only.

It was time to get better.

XxxoxxX

While the two younger children were doing their thing, Bulma decided to use this time to study the King's large supply of books. She was in awe at the many book shelves that the man had layered in the single room.

The most fascinating part was the way he had each shelf organized. There was one for martial arts techniques, one for children's stories, and even one full of delicacies from around the world!

The shelf that caught her interest the most however was the shinobi techniques. She grabbed a book labeled Kekkai Genkai: The Greatest Bloodline Limits First Edition. The author of the book was a person named Phantom Sharingan, something that struck Bulma as odd.

"Hmm... Didn't Naruto mention something about this?" she thought aloud as she blew dust off of the book.

Bulma recalled Naruto mentioning something about him having to face a boy named Neji Hyuuga with some type of Kekkai Genkai, the Byakugan she believed it was called.

"Doujutsu..." she mumbled, recalling Jiraiya mentioning it. Bulma quickly sifted to page 122, the start of Doujutstu. Much to her amazement, Byakugan was the first entry in the chapter.

"Byakugan, the all seeing white eye," she began under her breath, "one of the Three Great Doujutsu. This Kekkai Genkai is the Doujutsu of the Hyuga clan. The owners of this Doujutsu have an entirely white eye, ew," she made a disgusted face as she read this but of information.

Bulma decided to skip all of the history of this and went straight to the skills of the Doujutsu. "The Byakugan gives the user a 360º field of vision...that could be useful. The range of this vision varies between users and in fact can be improved with training. Its vision can penetrate through all solid objects and genjutsu. The Byakugan is also able to more effectively follow high-speed movements to better react to them."

Bulma skipped ahead as more history began to sprout of the eyes. "One of the great advantages is that it can see the chakra systems of its opponents!" she said excitably. "It can see through clones and even show the tenketsu that runs through living things..."

Bulma sighed as she ran a hand through her hair. If this chapter was anything to go by, then her friend was in trouble. She wished that she could've learned more about their attacks, but what she learned was valuable.

Naruto was a strong boy, but he would definitely need an extra boost for this opponent. She had the utmost faith in the boy but she was aware that he had no attack to combat this Hyuga kid. His all seeing eyes were something to fear, and apparently he could see all around him.

It was then that she had an idea. A slow smile spread across her face as she formulated a plan in her head.

"I hope the Byakugan is ready for what I have in store for it," she said with a twisted grin, her mind moving quickly as she formulated a plan.

XxxoxxX

Neji struggled to stand back to his feet. He was sweating and panting profusely from the strain he was being put through. His body was aching and he could feel his muscles beginning to swell up.

His sensei stood across from him with a wide smirk on his face. The man didn't have a single scratch on him.

"Please forgive me if I'm going too hard on you," he said with feigned innocence. "I only thought the Hyuga were _much _stronger than this."

Neji glared at the man. He had to admit, this guy packed a punch. Surprisingly he was also good at hitting chakra points. He could easily halt an opponents use of chakra without breaking a sweat.

Neji lost the chakra to retain his Byakugan. His knees buckled and he fell onto them. Chakra exhaustion was quickly taking its toll on him. Neji struggled to stand, but felt a foot gently land on his back.

The man lowered his eyes closer to his students face. He glared sternly at the teenager. "This will be our last training session, until after the exams. I want you to train that technique that I've been teaching you, both of them." His eyes lowered at the boy. "Do not lose in this exam, Neji, or there will be consequences." The man increased the pressure on Neji's back, causing him to grunt in pain. "Do you understand me?"

"Hai!" the boy quickly responded as the pain became too much for him to handle. The man continued to apply pressure, and then sped off into the sky, using the boys back as a spring board, effectively knocking him into the ground. Neji could hear the man's cackles as he continued to distance himself.

Neji rolled into his aching back, exhausted beyond belief. Guy sensei had never been as vicious as this man was, and he was a tough sensei himself!

He had to admit that it was helping, however. Neji could feel that he was much more powerful. His eyes were stronger and his chakra capacity and control were increasing as well.

Neji forced himself to his feet. He shakily began to walk through the trees, in no rush to get home. It was then that he heard footsteps.

"Byakugan!" Neji's eyes activated and he saw the culprit. Standing a few feet beside him was none other than this years rookie of the year, Sasuke. The boy looked as if he had trained himself to chakra depletion as well.

Both boys glared at each other. They knew that the other was tough, but each believed to be the better.

Neji's blood began to boil as he stared, smirking at Sasuke. This was the person he was to destroy. He didn't care about his match with the Uzumaki, or even the sand kid that destroyed his pathetic teammate. No, this was much more important. Their match would decided which was truly better, the best the Hyuga could offer, or the sole survivor of the Uchiha clan. The sharingan versus the byakugan.

It was fated to come to this.

"What are you staring at?" Sasuke asked, annoyed with the Hyuga. Hyuga and Uchiha never got along. They both believed that they had the better doujutsu.

Neji's eyes narrowed. "You better show some respect to your superior," he said in a low tone. This caused his enemy's eyes to narrow.

Sasuke grit his teeth as he felt lightning chakra began to hum around his hand. He really hated this guy. Not only did he lose to his idiotic partner, but he was supposed to be _better _than him. That loss put Neji on a higher pedestal, one he would love to tear down.

Neji smirked as he felt chakra gather around his hands in the familiar Hyuga jutsu. He knew that Sasuke was no match for him. Even Sasuke knew it. He was just pissed that his new sensei seemed blind to the truth.

"If I had to guess, I'd say you wanted to fight," Sasuke said as he gripped his left with his right.

Neji nodded with a growing smirk. "I guess I can humor you for a few seconds. My dead last partner beat you in less than ten, don't you remember?"

Sasuke grit his teeth as his chakra spiked. Forget his injuries, he was gonna make this Baka pay!

"Come on you Hyuga trash!" he yelled as he ran forward, lighting forming around his hand in an instant.

"Anytime, you worthless Uchiha!" he yelled back as he sprinted in the boys direction.

The boys closed the distance in less than a second. They both released battle cries, prepared to end the other for good.

"Sasuke!"

"Neji!"

Both boys were pulled by the back of their shirts and hurled with extreme force. They landed on the ground with thuds, Sasuke leaving a large trail in the dirt from his chidori tearing into the ground.

Guy and Kakashi landed in the middle of the two. They could only stare in wonder at their students.

"Guy, did you see?" Kakashi silently asked.

His eternal rival nodded somberly. "They were both aiming to kill."

Kakashi walked to Sasuke's side. He couldn't help but notice the trench dug by his lightning cutter attack. It was by far the largest that the Uchiha had ever cast! His answer to how it became so large came as he neared the slumped boy.

He could see the curse mark slowly receding back into his body. He knelt down and slung the boy over his shoulder. "I'm taking him to the medics."

Guy held his student bridal style. He couldn't help but be amazed at how strong the boy was getting without his guidance. It almost made him feel as if he failed as a sensei, yet proud of the rapid growth his star pupil was having.

Guy nodded towards his friend. "I'll do the same. Chakra exhaustion should set in soon."

Kakashi nodded as the two took off into the night. Although he was standing beside his oldest friend, his mind began to drift to his student.

The child's seal was leaking. He was sure that he sealed it well, but apparently he wasn't as good as he thought. He would have to take him to the greatest seal master alive.

Even though he could already regret asking.

XxxoxxX

"We made it!" the loud voice of a certain blonde rang out as he celebrated the arrival of his home town.

Although the citizens of Konoha treated him like trash, Naruto loved his home town. He was more concerned with the acceptance of the village than to be loved by them.

The group recently walked into the gates. The group received an instant head nod as soon as the keepers saw Jiraiya's face.

"This is your house?" Goku asked in amazement. "It's much bigger than mine!"

Naruto bawled out laughing at the slow raven haired kid. "This is my village you Baka! My house is in it!"

"Oh!" Goku said as if realization had set in. Everyone's eyes were suddenly on him as his stomach released a mighty roar. "Where can we eat?"

Bulma nodded in agreement. "I'm hungry as well!"

Naruto's face beamed with a smile. "I can show you the greatest food known to man!"

Goku's eyes widened. "Really? I want some!"

Bulma rubbed her stomach. "If it's as good as you say it is..."

"But first," Jiraiya said as he glanced at the boys, "come."

He motioned for them to come closer, which they obliged. The old man placed his hands on both of their foreheads, causing them to sag forward.

"What the hell, old man?" Naruto demanded through grit teeth.

Jiraiya smirked. "It's to keep you from running around so much. Now it's 40 on each limb!"

Goku began to slowly do stretches, loosening his muscles while the blonde continued to complain.

Jiraiya looked over his shoulder. "Are you ready, old man?" he asked his sensei.

"Hai!" Roshi quickly answered. "Better now then never I suppose."

"Stay out of trouble kids!" Jiraiya warned. He and the elder man took off before the could hear a response.

XxxoxxX

"Nice to meet you, Hokage." Roshi was bowed in front of the man while Jiraiya sat in the window.

Sarutobi quickly raised his hands to interject. "The pleasure is mine, Turtle Master!" He returned the bow. "What brings you to Konoha?"

A wide grin spread on the man's face. "I want to see how the youth are looking. Besides, I'm co-training one so it will be full of surprises!"

The third smiled at this. He was more than happy that Naruto was accepted to train under the legend. He was extremely curious as to how strong the boy could have gotten.

Roshi continued to smile. "How's the present I got ya?"

Hiruzen looked quizzically at the man. "Gift?" he asked. "You most certainly have me mistaken!"

Roshi vigorously shook his head. "No no no! On your third birthday, I gave you a pole! I'm sure you should be an expert by now!"

The two younger men looked at each other with confused expressions. Jiraiya shrugged as he stared into the eyes of his younger mentor.

Roshi glared at the two. "I'm not just some forgetful old geezer ya know! I know I gave you a stick, no foolin'!"

Sarutobi rubbed his chin in thought. He did own a stick, but he couldn't be talking about...

The man put his hands together for a jutsu as he bit his thumb. "Monkey King, Enma!"

The man thrust his palm onto the ground, a wave of smoke bursting from it. As the smoke cleared, a lone figure was standing there, a monkey clothed as a shinobi.

The summon glanced back at his foolish summoner. "What do you want?" he demanded irritably.

Sarutobi stared back at the beast, showing no emotion of fear. He smiled slightly at the monkey, getting a growl as his only response. "Enma," he politely said as he held a hand, gesturing in the other direction, "would you happen to know this man?"

Enma glared at his human. How dare the man summon him, just to show him off? He barely liked him, after the whole Hebi-sannin incident.

Enma heard a cough coming from behind him. He turned and looked, seeing Sarutobi's student. "Yeah, it's that student of yours, what about it?"

"Not him," Sarutobi stated, "him. Hiding behind the desk."

Roshi shrieked as he realized that his cover was blown. He never meant to give away the pole... Well, he really did, but that's because he forgot of the importance!

The pole was a holy artifact of the Simja tribe. There were only four in existence, but this was due to their extreme importance.

Each pole holds a different summon. Each summon is born the minute a new summoner is chosen. This summon will live its life along with its human partner.

"You... Smell familiar," the beast sad to Roshi. "Stand so I may see you."

The turtle hermit gulped as he heard this. He slowly lifted up, looking at the creature nervously.

"How's it goin?" he asked with a weird chuckle.

Enma wondered why the man felt so familiar. He could see that he remembered the face, but just couldn't connect it to anything.

"This is the great Master Roshi!"

Enma's eyes narrowed. He looked at the man and remembered.

This was the bastard that gave him away!

And used him as a toilet cleaner!

"Roooooshhiiiiiiiiiii!" he yelled as he took off after the screaming old man.

XxxoxxX

"Another bowl please!"

Bulma stared in amazement. She wasn't sure what to be more amazed about, whether the boys being on their 15th bowl of ramen, or that the two chefs were keeping up with their pace.

She sighed as she twirled her chopstick around in her only bowl. The boys were growing so rapidly that she didn't know how to react.

"What's the matter, Bulma?" Naruto asked between bites, "you don't like it?"

Bulma shook her head. "It's not that, I'm just watching my figure. I have to look my best for when I get my boyfriend, ya know?"

Naruto shrugged as he quickly pushed the plate to the side, reaching for another.

Goku was devouring his ramen, ignoring the looks the other customers were giving him. He slurped another bowl down, licking the inside clean.

"I wonder what Sensei's doing?" he said as he rubbed his belly.

"YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGGHHHHH!"

The three turned and were shocked at what they saw. There, jumping from rooftop to rooftop was there sensei.

Being chased by a monkey.

Wearing ninja clothes.

That's what most would've saw, but not this band of characters. Well, at least not two of them.

"Hey Goku," Naruto said. A slow smile went across his face. "Do you think that's your dad?"

Goku looked at the ape. His eyes went to the tail, and then back to his. A smile beamed on his face. "Daddy!" he yelled as he sprinted towards the retreating duo.

"Wait up!" Naruto yelled as he quickly dashed out. "Thanks Teuchi and Ayame!" He yelled as he waved at the duo.

They both waved back. "That's a lot of bowls I won't be getting back," the man said with a sigh. He was used to having one of the boys unlucky Sensei's to pay the tab.

The man was pulled from his thoughts as he heard a thump hit the counter. He looked down and saw a brown sack laying there. He looked up and saw the retreating form of the blue haired girl sprinting after the two boys.

"Keep the change!" she yelled without looking back.

The two looked at the sack, afraid to open it. The man finally got over the fear and opened it.

"Ayame..." he whispered. The girl looked at her dad with wide eyes, hands on her heart. "We're RICH!"

XxxoxxX

"This is the end of the line you bastard."

The turtle hermit shivered as he stared at his new foe. The look of anger in the eyes of him was intense, enough to make the strong man shake like a leaf.

He looked behind him and saw the long drop. He was standing in front of the Hokage monument. One missed step and he was done, for good.

As he looked the other way, he almost considered the fall.

"It was a mistake, ok!" he shrieked in fear of the still approaching creature. "I didn't wanna do it, I swear!"

The monkey King chuckled as he cracked his knuckles. He was gonna enjoy this!

"Daddyyyyyyyyyyy!"

The summon grimaced as he was tackled hard and fast from the side. He landed in a heap with something clutching onto him. He looked and saw a small human.

"Get your hands off me!" he roared as he pushed the boy away. The kid landed a foot away, but returned to his feet smiling.

"Are you my daddy?"

Enma's eye twitched. He looked at the boy in anger and irritation.

"What?"

Goku pointed at the beast. "You have a tail, just like me!"

Enma looked at the boy and was astonished to see the limb poking out of his butt. He quickly went through his memories, trying to remember if he mated with a human.

"Impossible..." he mumbled, scratching his graying head. He approached the boy and walked around him, poking the tail. _It's real _he thought as he poked it. The beast then looked up and noticed something on the boy.

"You!" He demanded as he pointed at the kid. "Where did you get that pole?"

"My grandpa gave it to me."

Enma rubbed his chin in thought. This couldn't be a mere coincidence, the pole always knows who it chooses.

He smirked at Goku.

"Prove to me that you deserve this," he said with a smirk.

Goku smiled as he lowered into a fighting stance. "Do you wanna fight?"

Enma glared at the kid with a feral grin. "I like your spunk!" me said with a chuckle as he lowered into his own stance. "Now I'm gonna-"

"Ha!"

Goku jumped as the monkey disappeared in a burst of smoke. He looked around for the monkey. "Are you using Naruto's attack?" He asked as he frantically looked around. He ignored the old master, who fell onto the ground with a relieved groan.

Sarutobi and Jiraiya looked at the man with apologetic faces.

"Excuse me for that," the Hokage said without hesitation. "He's a bit... Angry with me."

Roshi's response was a weak groan.

XxxoxxX

Well that's that. Not a lot I know but my laptop screen crashed, I'm typing on an iPhone. I'm also sorry about not having Naruto meet his team members, but they aren't real important at the moment. They will be next chapter, however. But here's a little extra, just for the wait.

XxxoxxX

It was early in the morning. The sky was bright red as the sun decided to peek it's head into the horizon. All would have been quiet and peaceful, had it not been for one white haired youth.

"DADDY I wanna TRAIN!"

A middle aged man and his child were walking down a long dirt road. They had been traveling for days, the child complaining the entire trip. He was bustling with energy and always wanted to be busy doing something productive.

The man sighed. He was proud of his son's drive, but it could get annoying at times. He loved long trips but his child was quickly making him despise them.

"We'll be there soon, my child," he said with a sigh. This of course didn't go unnoticed by the boy.

"When you sigh, it's usually a lie old man!" he yelled as he jumped in front of the man, fists clenched. "You know that I hate liars!"

The man sighed once again. He already knew how this was going to end.

The boy angrily pointed at the man. "There you go, sighing again! I'm gonna give you something to sigh about!"

The boy rushed his father, arms raised in the turtle style of battle. The man simply tilted his head to avoid the punch delivered. The child growled as he sent a flurry towards the older man, which were also evaded without the man moving his feet in the slightest.

The kid jumped back and angrily glared at his father. "How dare you disrespect me like that old man! Fight me!"

His father sighed wearily. "As you wish," he simply replied.

The kid smirked as he jumped to send a flying kick in his fathers direction. His smile began to falter as he saw the man grab his leg, swinging him in a violent circle. He couldn't help but scream comically as he was released into the air, flying hundreds of feet ahead of his father. His eyes were squeezed shut as he squealed in fear, unsure what he was going to impact.

The child gasped as he felt arms catch him in the air. He instinctively gripped onto the shirt of his savior, still sniffling as they landed softly on the ground.

He looked up at his savior as he was placed back on his wobbly feet. The man was tall, much taller than he and his father. His skin was tanned and his eyes were dark. The man's raven hair fell below his waist and a smile was plastered on his face.

The weird thing to the child was the man's attire. He wore a haori over a full-length brown and white gown, along with a simple red headband. The most amusing thing was his hat, which was also brown and white with the kanji for Hokage on it.

"Who the heck are you?" The child asked as he toddled, trying to regain his sense of balance. He attempted to give an angry glare, but the man only chuckled at the look.

"Nice catch, my friend!" the child looked over his shoulder and saw his smiling father waving towards the man. He seemed to be relaxed, as if he knew the weirdo that randomly caught him.

The black haired saviors face widened as he saw the man approaching. "Gohan, is that you?" he asked as his smile widened. At the smile the man returned, he was more than sure of the man's identity.

"Indeed it is, Hashirama. It's been how long, five years?" he asked his lifelong friend as he finally caught up to them. He and the raven haired man shook hands and begin grinning uncontrollably.

The lone child looked between the two men in both surprise and anger. The two men were just chatting away, ignoring his presence!

"Hey, pops, whose this?" he asked his old man.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Gohan reached over and picked up the child, grinning wider than humanly possible. "See, it's my son! Jiraiya!"

Jiraiya had his arms crossed and a pout on his features as he glared at the older man, who smiled broadly at the child. He held out his hand to shake the child's.

"Hey Jiraiya! I'm your Uncle Hashirama!" he said while still grinning with his eyes shut. Jiraiya's glare sharpened at the man.

"My dad's an only child."

Hashirama's features fell and he begun to sulk. "Yes... You're right..."

Jiraiya grimaced, how could his mood change so quickly?

Gohan continued to laugh as he placed his still scowling son on the ground. "I see nothing's changed in the slightest, except your title of course!"

The man's face instantly brightened up. "Ah, yes! Please, let me show you around the village!

For the next few minutes, the two overly excited men were exploring the town with a disgruntled four year old in tow. Every time the Hokage would point out a place and explain its importance, the kid would snort and mumble under his breath.

When his father told him that they'd go to a ninja village, he expected it to be amazing : men fighting, weapons blazing in the air as they attempted to kill one another. To his annoyance, all there was were black haired snobs with sticks up there butts, wierd looking people with long dog teeth, and two lazy guards sleeping at the post.

Weren't ninja supposed to be awesome?

"And this is the school for shinobi." The trio were stopped in front of a small brown building. Many parents were standing in the front, hugging and kissing there children.

Jiraiya smirked. "I trained with the best, and passed!" he boasted, chuckling at the unlucky students.

Hashirama looked at the boy with a raised brow. "Is he talking about..."

Gohan nodded. "He's the youngest to ever pass the training of the turtle hermit, even if it was only a 'preliminary course'..."

Jiraiya smirked. "Dad's just mad that he still trains with the old geezer."

Gohan tensed at this. "At least I can do the Kamehameha," he said with his own smirk.

The father and child glared at one another. The Hokage nervously chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Grandpa!"

All three of the heads turned to see a blonde girl running towards them.

Jiraiya stared in aw at the blonde beauty. Living with Master Roshi made him grow a certain appreciation for women. He could easily guess a bust or waist size from a mere glance.

But this girl... She was beautiful!

The girl had a long blonde ponytail with two bangs in her head. She wore a traditional green kimono with a red sash around the middle. What drew him in the most were her eyes. Although he'd seen brown eyes before, hers pulled him in like a moth to a flame.

Tsunade squealed as she jumped in her grandfathers arms. The man twirled her in a circle while she laughed all the while. Gohan looked down and noticed Jiraiya's stare. He couldn't help but smile at this.

"Is my favorite granddaughter ready for her first day at the academy?" the Hokage asked as he looked into her smiling face.

The girl giggled as she nodded. "I'm your _only _granddaughter! But of course I am!" She then looked at the two strangers. Her eyes settled on Jiraiya's staring face. "Is he a new student too?

Jiraiya quickly shook his head and puffed out his chest. "Of course not! I'm too strong to be in your school, thank you very much!"

Tsunade wiggled out of her grandfathers grip and glared at the boy. "Oh yea? I bet I could beat you up, no problem at all!"

Jiraiya scoffed at that. Him lose to a girl? Not likely. "I'm sorry, but you couldn't even if I let you."

Tsunade glared at the boy. How dare he disrespect her like that? Did he not know her status in the village? "Can too!"

"Can not!"

"Can too!

"Can not!"

"Can too!"

"Can n-"

"Jiraiya!"

The boy flinched as he heard his father shout his name. He looked back at the man and could tell that he was agitated. "Yeah dad?"

"We'll be spending the next few days here. I have important business to tend to, so we won't head home for a while." He held up his hand as he saw the boy about to protest. "It won't be long, no more than a week."

Jiraiya folded his arms as he looked away. "And what am I supposed to do while your busy?"

Gohan gave his child a wide smile, one that made the boy feel uneasy. "You'll be taking classes, of course!"

"WHAT!" The two kids yelled simultaneously. They both looked at the man, expecting answers. To o their surprise it was the other adult that chose to speak.

"This was planned by me and Gohan for quite some time now. It'll be good to see how the two of you match up against children older than you, since you both are pretty talented individuals."

The two children glared at each other. They both looked like they were ready to burst at a moments notice. Sparks seemed to fly between the two as their glares intensified.

It was then that the school bell rang. Both children glanced at the building, one in fear, the other in annoyance.

"Oh no! I'm gonna be late!" Tsunade shrieked as she took off for the building.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes and looked back at the two men. He smirked at them. "That was all some kind of joke, ri-"

"See ya!" his father yelled as the two men disappeared smiling.

Jiraiya gripped his white hair and released a scream, shocking the parents that were returning to their homes. They all looked at the crazed child with caution as they passed him.

"Damn it dad! How could you leave me in this weird village with these weird people and their weird clothing! Not to mention this weird school and that weird pretty girl with those weird brown eyes -"

"Excuse me, but are you talking about Tsunade?"

XxxoxxX

Soooooo yeah. For the next few chapters I plan to give you a gaze into Jiraiya's past, which is slightly different than the original. I hope yall like it. I also start the fights next chapter. Be ready, because they're going to be totally different. Anyways, please read and review!


	16. Genius vs Genius

Genius vs Genius

Drip…drop…drip…drop.

In a lone prison cell, Yamcha was fearing for his life. He was stuck in the cell for the last few hours, but it felt like days. There was a constant dripping sound, and he was more than sure that it was blood.

The room was damp, and the sound of groaning was clearly audible through his isolation cell. The boy was sweating profusely, more than terrified for his upcoming turn of interrogation. Yamcha wish he had Puar with him, but the poor cat was separated as soon as they were imprisoned..

Being stuck in Konoha was the worst. Every nuke nin was aware of their T&amp;I division, and the man known as Morino Ibiki was notorious for his ways. He could make the most seasoned shinobi buckle from the dangerous jutsu he could deal without a hint of remorse. Rumors were that the man actually smiled while his victims screamed of pain.

Yamcha cringed as he heard another scream. The same man was screaming non stop for the past few hours! It made Yamcha shiver and wonder how he would be treated.

The bandit began to shiver uncontrollably as he heard slow steps being made. He pushed himself as far along the wall as he could, wishing he could become invisible. He saw the shadow of two figures approaching his cell.

The door was forcefully sprung open. Standing before the trembling teen were two figures. The smaller was a blonde boy wearing a black robe. He was caked in blood and looked beyond exhausted. The grimace on his face showed Yamcha that he was just the one being interrogated. The blonde was thrown to the floor of Yamcha's cell and didn't move, save for the occasional trembling.

The other figure took a step into the cell and scared Yamcha shitless. The man was much taller than the boy and his face was littered with scars. After one glance at the scowl on his face, he was sure who it was.

This was Ibiki Morino, the head of the T&amp;I division.

Yamcha couldn't move. The killing intent radiated off of the man in waves.

"It's your turn, kid," the man said in a deep voice, causing the bandit to jump in fright. Ibiki smirked, he loved seeing fear in his victims. "And if you love your life, you will talk. Quickly."

XxxoxxX

Hinata slowly followed behind Kiba. The two genin were walking through a thick crowd of people. Kiba wore a big smile, more than anxious to see his fellow classmates battle.

Although Kiba was jealous that he was eliminated so early, by the dead last at that, he wished nothing but the best for his classmates.

Although Kiba knew he shouldn't, he had his winners picked out in his mind. Kiba wished nothing but the best for his classmates. The shinobi from the other villages were nothing to scoff at.

Gaara was the worst. Kiba and his extremely strong sense of smell almost gagged when the boy was near. That sand he carried was saturated with blood! He like tell that he killed many people, and he would bet that the boy enjoyed it.

His siblings, Temari and Kankuro were a mystery. He didn't get to see much of her abilities, she beat that cocky weapon girl from the class ahead of his with a simple swing of her fan. As much as Kiba wanted to laugh at the arrogant girl being brought down a peg or two, he refused to give the enemy's any type of congratulations. Kankuro's match was just as quick. He could tell that the boy was dangerous, however. His puppet reeked of blood. That shinobi from the sound would be a peace of cake for just about anyone in Konoha.

If Kiba was too hope for one of the Konoha nin to fail, it would have to be Neji. The Hyuga kid had a stick so far up his ass, he could use it as his tonsil. The boy was very arrogant, yet he had the skills to be. He also held a strong hatred for the way he both mentally and physically abused his timid partner, his own cousin at that!

Shikamaru was a definite win. Although the boy was lazy, he was the smartest kid that he knew. He remembered playing Anbu and Missing Nin, whichever team the Nara was on always would win, based on the boys strategic mind.

Shino would definitely surprise the spectators. He was silent, yet skilled. Kiba knew from experience how dangerous his bugs could be. The boy was strategic as well, just no where near as smart as the Nara.

Sasuke and Naruto were the two too watch. The two genin were growing at a rapid pace: Kiba couldn't help but to blame it on their rivalry. The two preteens were quickly becoming the better of their nine graduating class. Now that they were being trained by two of the most powerful shinobi in the history of Konoha was a feat in itself. The two could only have gotten better in their time away training.

Kiba grimaced as he felt a pain in his abdomen. He hissed lightly and pressed on it, to ease the slight burning. Although he was healed for the most part from his encounter with Yamcha, there still was an irritating burst of pain every once in a while from his stomach area. He swore that he would beat that guy senseless the next time he saw him.

Hinata's mind was elsewhere. As she walked behind Kiba, she couldn't stop the shiver going down her body from both pain and excitement. Hinata was still in bandages from her scuffle with not only her cousin but also the bandit.

The girl was beyond excited to see Naruto. She was going to cheer him on to win this tournament! The blonde made a vow to defeat her cousin, the same cousin that broke her down a month before.

Hinata blushed as she thought of the other boy. Goku was strange, but strange in a good way. He was more happy than Naruto, which was a feat in itself. The young tailed kid was beyond friendly, she had yet to see a frown on his face. His laugh was a melody to her ears.

Hinata then began to blush harder. What would Naruto think if he knew how she was thinking about his friend? What would he think if he knew how she thought about him. Her face was a deep red as she thought of this.

"Hey, Hinata. Look, these seats are free."

The girl was brought out of her thoughts as she heard her teammates voice. They were lucky to find a front row seat.

"Are you ready to see this, Hinata?" the boy asked the blushing girl.

Hinata nodded. She scanned the stadium, searching for the familiar orange jacket. A slow smile spread across her face as she noticed the boy. He was bounding across the ground, smilingly widely as he approached Shikamaru. After shaking the boy's hand and yelling insults at her cousin, she saw the boys began waving at an excited crowd. Naruto's awe struck face was enough to cause a smile to cross hers.

Hinata heard talking to her right. It was two Chunin, chatting calmly about Naruto's pending loss. Hinata glared back towards the dome with a determined look.

"Do your best… Naruto!" she said louder than normal.

XxxoxxX

"Why can't I sit with Naruto?"

Bulma sighed. She was really getting irritated with her raven haired companion. The boy kept asking about the blonde, even after she explained the situation!

"Goku, for the last time you can't!" she barked at the boy. "He's getting ready for his fight!"

Bulma was scanning the ground in search for the young blonde. She eyes the gathered genin, surprised that the boy had yet to make an appearance.

The girl was actually excited to see the blonde that she had grown fond of. The boy was full of energy and always held a smile on his face. She was sure that he would win his match, and her helping him only boosted his chances.

As much as she was worried about him getting hurt, she still was confident in his success. The child could make hundreds of himself, and she was more than excited to see all of them crush his opponent.

Bulma shook her head vigorously. She wasn't sure where that came from! Bulma wasn't into violence, she only wanted her perfect boyfriend. The only time she liked to see aggression was when she was being protected.

"Goku, it's about to began!"

Bulma looked and saw Jiraiya holding Goku, stopping the boy from jumping over the balcony. The two was a funny sight, the older man was struggling to bring the boy to his seat.

Bulma had to admit, she loved her new band of friends.

XxxoxxX

"Oh, there's one more thing before we get started."

The seven genin stared at their instructor as he fished into his vest. The man pulled out a paper and began to unfold it. He held it for the students to read. On the sheet was a new arrangement for the fights.

"There's been a slight change in the match ups. This is to show you that anything can happen, a C ranked mission could quickly elevate into an A ranked, so be prepared for change." He looked at each genin. "This one is set, so get a good look at it."

Shikamaru's eyes widened as he saw the changes. "Aww great, now I have to fight first, what a drag." Shikamaru said with a grimace. He gazed towards his new opponent Neji, who stared ahead indifferently. He then took another glance towards the list. What happened to my extra match? Oh well, I'm not complaining.

"Yes!" The young orange clad shinobi jumped in joy as he saw his matchup. He was too fight Sasuke! "What better way to show off my skills than on the teme!"

Kankuro and Temari glanced at each other uncomfortably. Kankuro was to be against his kid brother! How the Hell was he supposed to get out of this fight?

Shino looked towards the Sand kunoichi. He quickly analyzed her as she glanced at him with a glare. The surrounding genin could hear the bugs getting excited around him.

"Um, question? Question?" Naruto yelled with his hand up. "What happens to my opponent Sasuke? He isn't here yet!"

The instructor put both hands behind his back and began to speak in a lecturing tone. "If a candidate is not in the arena at the time his name is called, he forfeits the match."

Naruto looked towards the arena entrance with a glare. It didn't make sense! Sasuke would've rather dragged himself here than to miss this fight!

Naruto's mind wandered as the man began explaining the rules. He thought of all the the places Sasuke could be, but it came out as a blank. He barely knew the boy other than the times they met as a team.

"These are the match ups for the first fight. Shikamaru Nara versus Neji Hyuuga. Those two stay, the rest of you return to the waiting area."

Everyone other than the two boys turned to walk away. Shikamaru placed his hands deeper into his pockets, grumbling as he went to the center of the dome. Neji swiftly took his spot, glaring at the lazy boy. He was one easy step the boy had to make. It was his destiny to be the greatest, so he feared no one in this tournament.

"Hey, Shikamaru!" The boy glanced up to the stands. His eyes met the blue of Naruto's the boy gave him a grin. "Beat his ass, will ya?"

Shikamaru grinned at his friend. The boy sure as hell knew how to make a scene. He looked ahead at his opponent and saw him lower into his stance.

"What a drag…" The Nara was really considering quitting. He didn't care about the promotion, it would only mean more work anyway. The sun was at a terrible angle in the sky, he barely had any shadows to work with. He was trying to see six steps ahead of his opponent, but it was harder than you'd think.

Neji, being a close range fighter, would be a challenge. Although he would have enough space to reach him, the boy was much quicker than Shikamaru. He could also see the attack coming from every angle, thanks to those eyes of his.

XxxoxxX

Asuma breathed heavily. It was just his luck, his only student to advance would have to face the previous rookie of the year, in the first match at that. He could see that green clad freak Guy mocking him all the while.

"Yosh!"

"Speaking of the devil…" a green clad man with a bowl cut appeared quickly beside the jonin. A wide smile could be seen on his face.

"This shall be a very youthful match to watch!"

Asuma nodded. It was slightly annoying to be around his classmate, but he couldn't deny the man. They had been through hell and back in there youth, and he knew the man was powerful beyond imagination.

This only made him worry for Shikamaru even more.

"Hai, that student of yours seems to be pretty talented.

Guy gave his friend a wide smile. "Yes, Neji is brimming with youth! That Shikamaru seems to be as well!" The man's voice turned more serious. "Let's hope he can match with my students to make this match electrifying!"

Kurenai decided to speak up. "Shikamaru's too lazy to keep up with Neji. The boy isn't nearly as quick or strong as the Hyuuga."

Asuma began chuckling as he fiddled with his lighter. "Don't let the kid fool you." The two Jonin turned to him with puzzled expressions. Asuma lit his cigarette and took a long pull. As he let out the smoke, he continued to speak. "He hasn't been sitting around doing nothing for the past month.

XxxoxxX

"Are you ready?" Shikamaru slowly nodded, shifting into a defensive stance. "Begin!"

Shikamaru gulped as he saw the boy sprinting towards him. He was slightly happy that the Byakugan wasn't being used, but got over this as he noticed how close the boy was.

Shikamaru quickly placed his hands together. " Kagemane no Jutsu!"

Neji glared as he jumped over the shadow. "Don't be foolish, Nara!" He angrily yelled as he came down with a kick towards the boy.

Shikamaru grimaced as he jumped away. He clumsily landed on his feet, but instantly had to jump back as another kick planted itself where he was a few moments ago. Judging from the mini craters the two stomps created, the boy had been training. A lot.

Neji landed gracefully and turned to face the lazy boy. He noticed Shikamaru's brow was furrowed, as if he were thinking a plan. Neji snorted at that. As if any plan that boy could come up with could beat him!

Shikamaru retreated back, putting distance between him and the overly skilled Hyuga. He quickly dug into his pouch and withdrew two kunai, launching them at the boy. Neji simply caught the weapons in his hands, tossing them to the side with a smirk.

"Are you toying with me?" he asked as he began running towards the boy, ducking under a wave of kunai. His grin widened as he kept running towards the retreating boy. He activated his Byakugan, smiling widely as he saw the boy grimace while still retreating.

Almost….. Almost…. "Now"! Shikamaru placed his hands together in the rat seal.. "Kagemane no Jutsu!"

Neji's eyes widened as he jumped back to dodge the shadow. The shadow followed his movement, and he jumped to the right to get away. Neji smirked as he saw the shadow stop, knowing that it reached its limit.

"Looks like you've reached your limit, Nara. You should've known, you can't change your destiny."

Shikamaru scowled. He reached into his pouch. Damn… Only three kunai left… Wait!" Shikamaru felt three circular objects in his pouch. He instantly knew what they were and quickly came up with an idea.

Neji saw his opponents face become one of confidence. He smirked, lowering into his Juken stance. Shikamaru dug his hand deeper into his pocket, lowering himself as well.

A breeze went through the silent arena. Both boys stared at one another, each ready for action. Shikamaru held a worried expression, while Neji smiled, seemingly unaffected by the seriousness of the match.

In a burst of speed, Neji quickly took off in the direction of his opponent. Shikamaru grit his teeth as he withdrew two of the kunai. The Nara threw the projectiles at the boy.

Neji reflexively ducked away from the weapons. What's that? Neji noticed a slight gleam reflecting behind the weapons. Strings?

Neji instinctively jumped as he noticed the shadow being created by the weapon. He caught another kunai that the boy threw mid air and tossed it back, causing Shikamaru to jump to the side to avoid it. "Did you think you'd catch me with that simple trick? How foolish of you, Nara!"

Shikamaru groaned audibly. "So much for that plan," he muttered loud enough for the boy to hear. His eyes widened as Neji was quickly in front of him. He grunted in pain as the tenketsu in his right arm was hit, causing it to fall lifeless.

Neji jumped back to glance at his handiwork. The boy glared at him in both pain and anger. Neji could only smirk in response. "Quit now, if you know what's good for you." He lowered into another stance, the gentle fist. "You're in range of my attack!"

Shikamaru glared at Neji. "You know what?" he asked as a smirk slowly spread across his face. "You're in mine!"

With his good arm, the Nara withdrew two balls from his weapons pouch. Neji instantly knew what they were, but he froze momentarily as they were thrown to the ground in front of them.

"Aaaaaaaurgh!" The boy released a pained scream as a blinding light exploded in front of the two. The Byakugan only helped to intensify the pain. Neji wiped vigorously, the pain caused tears to involuntarily fall down the boys face.

Shikamaru grimaced at the boy. He really didn't want to hurt his fellow Konoha nin in such a way, but things had to be done. Neji's screaming only helped to intensify the regret the boy felt. He looked towards the stands and saw his classmates looking at him.

Surprisingly, they didn't seem as hurt as he was. They looked worried, yet proud at what the boy had done. He knew the fight was over, but suddenly did something that surprised everyone.

"I forfeit."

The arena became silent. Everyone stared at the Nara, who looked at the proctor with a lazy expression. "You heard right, I quit."

"What?" A loud yell could be heard. Everyone knew that it was Naruto before he jumped into the arena. "Shikamaru, you won! Why the hell would you quit?"

The Nara shrugged, his lifeless arm dangling limply as he did it. He began walking to the stand, ignoring the way the crowd booed him. "I don't care about the promotion. It's only more work."

Naruto growled at the boy. "But you beat the teme! Why fight if you didn't want to win?"

Shikamaru shrugged once more. "I only wanted to show him that he wasn't almighty." He glanced back at the Hyuuga being carried out on a stretcher, writhing in pain. "And I did that effectively."

Naruto looked at Neji, and couldn't stop the slow smirk crossing his features. He even laughed at the way the boy attempted to glare at him. "Hehe, I guess your right." He stuck out his tongue at the boy, causing him to growl.

Shikamaru smirked at Naruto. The boy was so childish that it was actually calming. "Your match is next, if your teammate shows up that is."

Naruto nodded with a solid face. "He better show up!"

XxxoxxX

So that was match one. Not too well, I know. Sure wish I had a beta, then my fights would be more interesting… Any takers? But anyway, here goes A continuation of Jiraiya's childhood!

XxxoxxX

"Excuse me, but are you talking about Tsunade?"

Jiraiya paused in his rant and glared at the child that spoke. The boy looked to be around his age. The boy was pale, with gold eyes. Around his eyes were purple markings. The boy wore clothes that were much too big for him. He had long hair that fell below his shoulder.

"Dude, you need some sunlight!" Jiraiya said to the boy.

The boy began blushing as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm sorry. I was running late for school, and I heard you yelling. Is this your first day too?"

Jiraiya sighed. This boy seemed nice enough, so he might as well become his friend for the meantime. "Yea, unfortunately. My good for nothing dad registered me. What's your story?"

The boy looked to the ground. "I'm an orphan. My caretakers not very nice, so I chose to come to school instead."

Jiraiya felt bad for the kid. It seemed as if he had a bad life. He walked up and pat the boy's thin shoulder. "I'm Jiraiya!"

The child began blushing. "My name is Orochimaru."

Jiraiya looked quizzically at the kid. "That's a weird name," he mumbled. "Well, Orochi, wanna go to class together?"

Orochimaru nodded swiftly. He never had a friend, so it was kind of a new experience to have one.

The two boys walked in unison towards the building. When they entered their class room, all eyes were on them.

"Your late!" a voice shrieked, causing them to cover their ears. The owner of the voice was their new sensei. It was a lady, easily in her mid thirties. She had brown hair in a long spiky ponytail and blue eyes. She wore a Chunin vest over an all black spandex suit.

"And you're loud!" Jiraiya yelled back at the lady. All of the students gasped, shocked that the kid would actually yell at his sensei.

The lady glared at the boy. As much as she wanted to hurt the kid, she couldn't bring herself to do it. Not in the first day, at least. "What is your name, boy?"

Jiraiya glared at the lady. He could already tell that he wasn't going to get along with her. "I'm Jiraiya Son. I would ask your name, but I could care less."

The class all inhaled sharply. This student was a real prick!

The teacher began fuming at the boy. She quickly stormed towards him, rolling up her sleeve. "Why I outta-"

"Stop, Ms. Umino!"

The lady froze. She looked back and saw Tsunade glaring at the disrespectful youth.

"Hai, Tsunade," the lady said. She noticed the kids glaring at each other. They seemed to know one another, and if she had to guess they weren't friends.

"Umm… Ms. Umino?" The older lady looked at the other boy that walked in with Jiraiya. "I'm Orochimaru, ma'am."

She smiled at the sweet boy. She could tell that they would get along well. "Hello Orochimaru. It's nice to meet you. You and you're," she turned a glare back towards Jiraiya, "Jiraiya can take a seat."

Jiraiya gave the lady one final glare as he was dragged away by Orochimaru. There was only two seats left and whoa and behold.

They were both beside Tsunade.

The girl instantly turned away from the white haired delinquent as he sat by her. "Hello, Orochimaru," she said with a smile.

The orphan began to blush once more. "Hello, Lady Tsunade," he replied with a smile.

"Hey, Orochimaru!" Jiraiya yelled over the girls head. "Don't talk to her or you'll catch the cooties!"

Tsunade turned angrily to the boy. "You are so rude, you pathetic little runt!"

Jiraiya glared at the girl in equal anger. "You're one to talk, you little blonde b-"

"Watch your mouth when you speak to her!"

The trio turned around and saw a blue haired boy glaring at Jiraiya. The boy had green eyes that stared angrily at the boy.

He's hot Tsunade thought as she stared at the boy.

"Show some respect to the Hokage's granddaughter."

Jiraiya glared at the older boy. He noticed Tsunade looking at him in awe and couldn't stop the blush that spread across his face. "Who do you think you are?"

"I'm Dan Kato. And I'll be your leader one day, boy."

Jiraiya scoffed at the boy. "Oh yeah? I can do anything better than you!"

The boy smirked. "We'll see, boy."

Jiraiya banged his hand on the desk as he stood up. "Whatever the teacher gives us, I promise I'll do better than you!"

Ms. Umino chose this time to speak. "Jiraiya, sit down!" The boy began to mumble as he took his seat, resulting in a chuckle from Dan. The lady began to smile as she began passing out papers. "And now, a written assessment to see where you all stand."

"Crap."

XxxoxxX

Things are getting real crazy for our favorite Sannin. How will he and Dan's rivalry play out? Stay tuned to find out! Oh, and btw, I'm sure some of you will hate me after the exams. Something big is going to happen… Really big. But anyway, tell me how you like this chapter, or if you don't at all. Thanks for reading!


	17. A Cowards Retreat

Late arrival

The battle between Shino and Temari was rather… Uneventful.

The two kept distance between each other, one attacking with bugs while the other used wind. Temari didn't use any Justus, which caught the other competitors off guard. She continued to send wave after wave of wind with her large fan, while Shino would dodge frequently.

Unknown to everyone, Shino was holding back as well. As he dodged, he was simply learning the girl's movements. He could tell that she wasn't taking this battle seriously so he did the same. He wasn't the least bit surprised as she withdrew mere minutes into the fight.

"And your winner, Shino Aburame," the proctor said in a bored tone. The crowd clapped for him, and there was also a loud buzzing coming from the Aburame side of the stadium. Shino glared at the Sand Nin as she jumped back into the waiting area.

Meanwhile, Naruto was getting antsy. He was waiting a whole month to get into his match, a whole three years to fight the Uchiha brat, and now the bastard chose to be late? How dare he!

Genma glanced towards the Hokage, who simply nodded towards him. The proctor cleared his voice. "Will Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha please come to the arena."

Before the man could finish calling his name, Naruto was jumping over the railing. He landed sloppily, barely catching himself before he fell forwards. He looked around, expecting to see his rival.

"Where's the teme?" he asked no one in particular. He looked towards the Hokage and was given a shrug. A low growl escaped his throat.

Genma looked towards the crowd. He knew this was going to suck, but it had to be done. "Sasuke Uchiha is not here, therefor, he surrenders his match. The winner is-"

Before the man could finish his statement, there was a whirl of leaves in front of him. He lazily gazed at the small storm, already expecting it to be Sasuke. To his surprise, it was more than just him.

The Uchiha stood there in all his glory. He held a confident smirk towards his proctor. To his left was the Jounin Sensei of Team 7, Kakashi Hatake, for once not reading his book. On his right was Jiraiya, smirking at the proctor as well.

Sasuke took a step towards Genma. "I don't believe I remember forfeiting," he responded cooly." The proctor could only chuckle in response.

"You should have forfeit, if only to save you the embarrassment!"

Sasuke stiffened. He slowly turned towards the voice and was shocked to see Naruto there. "What are you doing in the ring, dobe? Did you lose your match and come to interfere with mine?"

Naruto beamed at the boy. "Actually, you are my match, teme!"

Sasuke's face slowly twisted into a mischievous smile. He lucked out this time. He doubted that he would have to show his training off this early!

"Well then, it's your unlucky day, Naruto." The boy shifted into his traditional stance. "I don't feel like playing any games today. I'll make this as quick as I can."

Jiraiya looked to Kakashi. "I'm guessing that these two brats are more popular than us, huh?"

Kakashi looked towards the man. "It'll be best to get to a safe place. I'm not sure how much you've trained Naruto, but I know how these two tend to act around each other." With that, the Hatake vanished the same way he came.

Jiraiya walked over the his student, ignoring the word battle the two boys had going on. "Hey Gaki," he said to the young Uzumaki.

"What?" Naruto yelled at the man, still gazing at his opponent. Before the boy could protest, he felt a hand on his forehead. Naruto felt a small burst of chakra Coke out of his Sensei's hand.

"Good luck!" Jiraiya said as he vanished.

XxxoxxX

"Hey, look! It's Naruto!"

Bulma gazed through her binoculars and zoomed in on the boy. He was standing in the front of a black haired kid; and if the screen was anything to go by, this was Sasuke.

As much as she knew about Sasuke, she didn't like any of it. The boy was selfish and arrogant, he seemed to enjoy bringing Naruto down. Well today she was ready to see these two compete!

"Go get him, Naruto!" She yelled at the top of her voice. She was shocked, however, as her binoculars was covered. The girl pulled back and saw Jiraiya returning to his seat. "Where the heck were you? You almost missed Naruto's fight!"

"There wouldn't even had been a fight if it weren't for me,"he grumbled out in annoyance.

Bulma crossed her arms, glaring angrily at the Toad Sage. "You're lucky I don't feel like arguing during Naruto's fight-"

The raven haired martial artist smiled wide as he jumped into his seat. "Hey, look! It's about to start!"

"Shut up, Goku," the girl replied calmly, giving the boy a glare. Goku flinched, covering his head in anticipation of an attack that never came.

The surrounding crowd was now staring at the trio in shock. It wasn't normal for children to speak to Jiraiya, and especially with this much disrespect.

The old man glared at the blunette, the edge of his mouth turned up in a scowl.

The civillians stepped back to give the three interesting characters space. The shinobi however, including an Aburame, three Inuzuka's, and the entire Hyuuga clan, save the immediate daughter of Hiashi, simply looked on with interest. What did these shinobi have in common?

They each specialized in tracking. That meant they were paying much attention to this little fiasco.

Jiraiya sighed. "Fine, you can win this round. The first punch is about to be thrown, so you got lucky kid." A smirk was Bulma's response, before turning back to gaze at the arena.

"Oh boy, I wish I could go out there and fight!" Goku said as he looked at the two boys glaring daggers at one another. "Jiraiya, do you wanna train with me after this is over?"

"Sure kid, whatever you want."

Jiraiya was barely paying any attention to the duo beside him. His eyes were observing his surroundings.

Being a Sennin, he was really in tune with everything going on around him. Jiraiya was feeling on edge, as if something were going to happen.

His first clue was the Anbu. Usually, they stayed hidden from the villagers. You'd never know they were there until they wanted to show themselves. Today they were simply staying in the back rows, watching the crowd.

The next thing was the townspeople. Jiraiya travelled the world for fun, and he was pretty sure that some of these people were using a henge. Why would you disguise yourself for a free event? It was idiotic at best, a sure fire way to attract unwarranted attention.

The final and most obvious sign was the fact that the other villages were literally brought to the doors of the village. Everyone was sitting here, watching the fight. If there was to be a frontal assault, all Hell would break loose.

It was this thought that made the man create three shadow clones, which each disappeared as quick as they came into the village. He knew that something fishy was up, and he had a good idea who would be involved in it.

The old man withdrew a flask and decided to take a swig. He was getting too worked up, and it could possibly be for nothing. He needed to calm himself, and what better way then thi-

"Jiraiya, it's starting!"

"Don't yell in my ear, Goku!"

XxxoxxX

Genma smirked as he looked at the two competitors. He had a feeling this would be an interesting fight. The two had a rivalry since they were children, so this was nothing new to him.

Sasuke, the lone Konoha Uchiha was the fan favorite here. He was talented as a toddler, well respected by his peers and instructors. The boy went through a horrible tragedy, watching his entire clan murdered before his very eyes, and came out of the flames stronger than before. He was ahead of most, if not all of his peers.

Then there was the blonde enigma. Genma was confused as to his progress, to be honest. The boy was a dead last that seemed to get lucky every step of the way. His excitement was impossible to contain, and the child was always optimistic in the most mundane of situations. He went from not being able to properly throw a punch to one of the most promising shinobi in his class in only a few months.

He looked between the two boys, noticing the determined stare down the two were having. "And the match…" He paused for a dramatic response, and smirked as the two boys jerked, eager to get to the other. "Begin!"

In an instant, both boys jumped towards each other, a fist cocked back. Their faces were stone, the only emotion being shown was determination.

As Sasuke was nearing Naruto, he noticed the boy was moving faster than him. 'Huh, guess the dobe's been training.' He withdrew his fist and raised his guard, preparing for the impact.

When Naruto's fist connected with Sasuke's forearm protector, a boom resonated around the arena. Things seemed to go in slow motion as the boys faces finally showed emotion. Both faces were the same.

They were beyond shocked.

Time returned to its normal pace as Sasuke realized he was being propelled back. He twirled in the air and released a number of kunai at his opponent.

Naruto was staring at his hands in shock. Was that really his power? What the heck happened? Earlier today he was his normal self, and now?

"Naruto, look out!"

The boy instinctively jumped as he heard Bulma's screech. He watched as the kunai trailed under him and into the ground. He was shocked, however, that he kept rising. He kept rising and rising, until he was over the clouds. "Oh no…" He grumbled as he reached his peak. When he looked down, he could only see clouds. He was terrified of reaching the ground, he cringed at the thought of it. Falling miles out of the air was terrifying, and would hurt like hell.

It was suddenly the boy got an idea. Sasuke wouldn't be prepared for this trick!

XxxoxxX

Sasuke looked on in annoyed amusement. Why- better yet, HOW the heck did the Baka jump so high? He watched as he became a mere speck in the distance.

It was then that things began to get funny. He continued gazing into the sky, and could swear that things seemed different. He activated his Sharingan to get a better view, ignoring the screams from the fan girls in the audience, and grit his teeth at what he saw.

Instead of seeing the blonde rocketing to the ground, he saw dozens. And when the dozens got closer, they turned into hundreds. Sasuke could only sum up his feelings with one word, whispered through grit teeth.

"Crap."

"Uzumaki misairu danmaku!" The clones all screamed at the top of their voices. They each wore a smile as they bombarded from the sky, fist stretched out as they released emphatic yells.

Sasuke was stunned for a moment, but quickly shook off the shock as he went through familiar seals. "Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!" A ball of fire was released from the boy's mouth, and he quickly threw a dozen kunai, quickly igniting them as they blasted in the air.

Each of the clones gulped as they saw the flaming projectiles headed their way. The first to be hit instantly burst into smoke, and was quickly followed by a dozen more. Shouts of pain and anger could be heard as the sky became covered in smoke, clone after clone being destroyed by the flame covered weapons.

It was then that Sasuke jumped back, a fist pounding into the ground where he was moments ago and dispersing afterwards. The impact left a large crater, and dozens more continued to fall. Sasuke was quickly dancing, attempting to avoid the bombardment of blonde clones.

The boy threw up a kick at a falling blonde and slid to the side as he saw another coming. As the clone fell he kicked him in the head, causing it to burst into smoke. Sasuke ducked as he felt another behind him. The clone released a yell as he kicked at the Uchiha who simply smirked as he threw up his forearm. The blonde clone growled and threw a punch, which the Uchiha simply ducked. He stuck out his leg and twirled, taking out the clone and three more that were approaching. He jumped back and threw a volley of kunai which each found their target.

Sasuke landed, smirking at the remaining Naruto's. He counted sixteen, not nearly enough to give him a challenge.

"Hey, Naruto." Sasuke's smirk widened as he saw the boys eyes furrow. "I just beat you over one hundred times in less than 5 minutes, hypothetically speaking. Did you train at all during this last month, dobe?"

This got the reaction he was expecting from the dead last. The boy's began snarling at the Uchiha, angry beyond measure. The one in the middle seemed to be the angriest.

'Bingo.'

"Shut up, Teme!" the more angry one yelled as he point a finger at his rival. He took a step forward, shaking angrily. "I'm much stronger than you, or anyone else in this stupid exam!"

Sasuke continued to smile at the boy. He was enjoying pushing his buttons. He actually had a lot of stress built up and was sure he'd be able to vent on his pathetic team mate.

"Is that so? Then please tell me why, even with hundreds of clones you can't lay a finger on me?"

That did it. In less than a fraction of a second, each clone were charging directly at him.

"Sasuke!" they yelled in unison, each preparing to attack.

The raven haired genin smirked as he lowered into his interceptor stance. He gazed at each blonde with a look of satisfaction. His body was twitching in anticipation, Kami how long he waited for this!

'It's been a long time coming, Dobe.'

The first clone to reach their target was quickly dispatched with a punch to the jaw. The next decided to attack together. "Heh," Sasuke smirked and lowered himself, twisting on his left foot and kicking the charging blondes.

The next three each carried kunai. Sasuke decided to humor them and withdrew one himself. His cool and calm face was a steep contrast to the scowls of the clones.

The first swung high and was quickly blocked. Sasuke expected the next to come charging from the side and he was right, he kicked the copy in the chest. He shoved his palm against the immediate ones nose and swung back with the kunai, dispersing another into smoke.

As the others began to get rush in, Sasuke went through seals, ending on tiger. "Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"

A massive ball of fire erupted from the mouth of the Uchiha, crashing into his rival. The ball blast through each clone, the original jumping high to avoid it.

Naruto landed and glared at his opponent. The boy smiled confidently, as if he'd already won this fight.

Well then, no holding back.

"What's the matter?" Sasuke taunted. "Can't fight one on one "

Naruto growled, his fist bawled to the side of him. He was angry, but Jiraiya always said that an angered fighter was a losing fighter.

He slowly inhaled, closing his eyes. As he released the breath he trained his eyes on his opponent.

"Are you ready?" Naruto asked. Sasuke continued to smirk.

"Are you talking to yourself?"

Before Sasuke could laugh at his own joke, he felt Naruto in front of him. He instinctively switched places with a log and was shocked as it burst into saw dust.

"What the-"

Sasuke released a cry as he was kicked in the back. 'Such speed!' he thought as Naruto slid on the ground, his momentum still carrying him.

Sasuke rolled and sprung up, landing skillfully on his feet, gripping a fuma shuriken and swinging it at Naruto.

The blonde ducked, dodging at the last second. Sasuke smirked as the one in its shadow turned back towards Naruto. His smile was wiped away, however, as the boy simply reached back and grabbed it out of the air.

Naruto finally smirked, enjoying the surprised look on Sasuke's face. He dropped the weapon in the middle of the two. The metal clanging onto the ground echoed throughout the silent arena.

Sasuke flinched at the metal scraping the ground. He had to admit that he was rather surprised by that move. He began to scowl, angry that the blonde had finally one-upped him.

"What's the matter? Are you scared or somethin?"

Sasuke glared intently at Naruto, causing the blonde to flinch. Naruto could feel the anger riding off of his teammate in waves, and the freaky red eyes only made it more scary. Instead of cowering, however, he chose instead to lower into a fighting stance. He bent his knees and rested his right fist on it. The other hand was raised, with a few fingers opened on it. The most annoying part of it all was the wide grin spread across his features.

"You should be bowing, Teme." The blonde began to chuckle as he noticed the scowl deepening on his opponent. "At least your loss would be expected. Not everyone can say they lost to the future Hokage, hee hee!"

XxxoxxX

Jiraiya couldn't help but to grin at his student. The boys stamina and power had improved dramatically, much from the help of his seals. The boy was easily keeping up with the Uchiha, which was a feat in itself.

The most amusing part of it all however was that he kept his cool. The young Uzumaki that he knew would have been boasting the entire battle. The blonde seemed to have an obsession with being the center of attention; his clothing was a testament to this.

"Hey, he's going to fight like me!"

Jiraiya glanced at Goku, then back towards the arena. He could see Naruto mimicking his fathers stance, yet less gracefully. He could note that his feet were off, and his hands were slightly too far apart.

"Goku, when did you teach him this?"

The boy beamed wide at the old man. "When we were traveling with Bulma! I taught him that, and he taught me a cool move!"

Jiraiya raised a brow at this. "Oh? And what move would that be?"

Goku gave him one of his soon to be famous grins. "It's a secret, heeheehee!"

XxxoxxX

Sasuke fixed his face into a smirk. He straightened up, placing one hand behind his back while bending the other at the elbow. As the blonde's eyes furrowed, the Uchiha goaded him with the come here motion.

A second later and Naruto was charging at him.

The blonde punched towards his opponent, but it was blocked by a raised forearm. He aimed a kick that was kneed away. The impact of the chakra enhanced block against the seal trained attack caused an audible boom throughout the arena, making the less experienced genin and civilians cover their faces from the ensuing wave of power.

What followed was a rapid series of blows. The Uchiha prodigy and his dead last teammate begin to move at a speed that was rarely found among genin. In fact, it hadn't been seen since the days of Kakashi Hatake versus his eternal rival Might Guy. For each punch thrown another followed.

XxxoxxX

Sasuke POV

'What the hell!'

Sasuke was in utter shock as he dodged another sloppy right hook from his adversary. He took that moment to send a kick into Naruto's chest, sending him away a few meters. As expected, the boy just jumped right back into the fray.

Throughout the battle there were two things that Sasuke noticed, and one of them irked him greatly. The first was that he was a much better fighter than Naruto. He smirked as this was proven in rhythm with his thought. The blonde attempted a high kick at his head, which he ducked under and retaliated with a strong uppercut, sending the preteen into the air. He jumped to meet him with a follow up kick, aiming to send him down.

It was then the other thing that he noticed was proven true once again.

Naruto was faster than him, by a slim margin, yet stronger by a slightly larger one. The boy recklessly let the hit land square in the center of his chest, grunting from the pain, and gripped the assaulting limb. Sasuke attempted to wrangle free but the boy's grip only tightened as he began to smile.

"I hope you didn't eat before this fight!"

Sasuke raised a brow at the boy's weird statement, but quickly realized what he was implying. The boy released a burst of chakra as he began to spin in a circle, twirling them both at a rapid pace. Sasuke's vision spun as he could only focus on Naruto's smug grin. He was slightly relieved as he was released from the cyclone.

The Uchiha slammed into the arena wall, causing a mini crater to form. He was happy for his sharingan as it seemed to make him immune to the dizziness usually accompanied from spinning at this rate, or at least less effected by it. His vision was spinning slightly but it was quickly returning to normal.

Naruto wasn't so lucky.

He watched as the blonde landed sloppily, teetering to one side as he tried to regain his balance. Sasuke took this time to force himself out of the wall with a grunt. He smirked as he approached the boy, just as he fell forward and heaved up his last meal. He began to cough as he attempted to stand, only to fall backwards and land on his behind.

Sasuke smirked once more at the poor excuse for a shinobi. To think he actually had a chance to beat him?

Yeah, he could beat him to the grave.

XxxoxxX

Naruto's POV

'Note to self; never do that again.'

Naruto was on his back, staring at the clouds. He was beyond dizzy! He was sure that if he was this disoriented with the Kyuubi inside him, then Sasuke should be on the other side puking blood.

How wrong was he.

Naruto quickly placed his arms above his head and pushed up as he saw the black clad ninja coming down from above. He landed barely om his feet and stared in awe at the three craters created by the three Uchiha's.

He frowned. Either he was still dizzy, or he was suing the hell out of the boy for copyright infringement.

Naruto was brought out of his daze by pain shooting into the right side of his face. He barely saw the boy move until the foot impacted his cranium. As he soared to the right the boy was there, getting his fist acquainted with Naruto's stomach. Before he could even release a scream he felt another sandal impacting his jaw, sending him once more into the air. He felt a hand grasped his foot and suddenly he was being slammed into the ground.

Naruto slowly pushed himself back to his feet. His limbs were shaky, and he ignored the cheers coming from the crowd of his inevitable defeat. Sasuke stood ahead of him with both hands in his pockets. The boy looked at him as if he knew he'd won already.

Like Hell he did.

Naruto shakily put his fingers together in his trademark technique. He ignored the smirk the duck butt headed bastard gave him as he positioned himself into his stance once again. He dropped his Sharingan, even further insulting the boy. "You just don't know when to give up, huh?" he asked, his voice laced with cockiness.

XxxoxxX

Sasuke POV

Sasuke couldn't believe the kid. He could barely stand and here he was, still trying to get to equal footing with him. He really didn't know when to give up!

It didn't matter. To him, it only meant that he could take out more frustration on the boy. This had been a long month for him. He was training non stop to master one technique. ONE TECHNIQUE! He was an Uchiha! The copied techniques for Kami's sake.

And not to mention his encounter with the Hyuuga. Not only did he seem to be annoyingly confident in his abilities, he also lost to his underling. This left a sour taste in his mouth and he was angry beyond belief. He was happy the boy was demolished in round one. He could only wonder where the Hyuuga was. He holed he won his fight because it would be a shame not to have his chance to defeat him himself.

Sasuke was taken out of his thoughts as he heard chuckling. Naruto was still standing wobbly, his body shaking from the effort. His fingers were still pressed together in his technique yet nothing came yet.

Naruto then began to laugh. Sasuke along with the spectators looked at him in confusion. Had he finally lost his mind?

"What's so funny?" he demanded angrily.

Naruto continued to laugh, gripping his stomach from the pain. "It-it's… YOU! HAHAHA!"

A noticeable tick could be seen on the boys head. "What about me?"

Naruto covered his face with one hand as the laughing simmered down to a chuckle. He continued to smile as he and the boy glared at each other. "It's simple. I've been trying to be as good as you in the last few months. I tried to get on the same level as you, and I always seemed to lag!" With this statement, Naruto threw a kunai and jumped away from his opponent, landing near the other end of the arena. Sasuke was shocked by the amount of force from the blade and jumped back to dodge it.

Sasuke's jaw tightened as he listened to the boy speak. He had a feeling he wasn't going to like how this was going to go.

"And I finally did it!" Sasuke's eyes thinned as the boy continued. "I figured it out! It wasn't because I wasn't as good as an 'Uchiha.' It wasn't because I wasn't as smart as you either." Naruto's voice began to raise as he continued. "It's because I was cheated my whole entire life! Every single year we were in class together, and every time the teacher would treat you like you were Kami's gift to earth, and I was spoiled ramen, waiting to be thrown out!"

Sasuke noticed the tears welling in the boy's eyes but he didn't care about them. He was getting more and more frustrated with every word the boy was saying.

"I figured it may have been because I was just bad in school. And then we got placed on teams and I was stuck with you AGAIN!" His hand swung to the crowds, an accusing finger beamed on the two other members lf Team 7. "That perverted cyclops and your hot girlfriend continued to prove that I was only in your way all the time! He taught you so much, while I had to freestyle on my own!"

Sasuke spared a glance at the two others and saw their expressions. Sakura looked angry at being accused of something he was sure she thought was only fair. In her eye's , it seemed he was the greatest person in the world. He then glanced at their leader.

Sasuke could see something akin to sadness in the man's eye. This was one of the few times the man wasn't engulfed in his book. He stared at the duo, and Sasuke could swear that he was hurt beyond repair. He turned his attention back to the blonde and saw him gazing towards the ground, his hands in fists at his side. He was surprised that the boy now spoke silently in almost a whisper.

"And then I met… them."

It seemed that every head in the crowd turned to follow the boy's gaze. Sasuke wasn't sure who these people were, and he could frankly give a damn.

"Hn. I don't wanna hear your li-."

"I WASN'T FINISHED DAMNIT!"

Sasuke took a cautious step back at the outburst. He could hardly believe that the roar came from the boy. The voice was deep and grisly, and he could feel a burst of killing intent laced along with it. He couldn't help but to hear people in the crowd murmur about some demon, causing him to gulp in fear.

Just like the day the boy left.

Naruto chose this time to continue, his voice rising once more. This time he didn't hold back the tears, letting them ro down his face as he took a step towards him. "Jiraiya taught me things that I never knew! Yeah, he's a pervert, but at least he man's up to it! He showed me how to fight, and made me do the most ridiculous things to make me stronger, but guess what? It worked!"

Sasuke noticed Naruto was reflexively flexing his muscles, the once slim arms now becoming more defined.

"And then there's Bulma." A blush formed on the boy's tear streaked face as he rubbed the back of his head like always. "She's the first girl to not be mean to me… well not all the time… and she even called me cute!" The boy's face now resembled an apple as he continued to blush. "And Goku…" Naruto looked towards the boy, Sasuke following his gaze. A smirk crossed the Uzumaki's face as he returned the gesture. "He's my best friend. He's the closest thing to a brother that I could ask for. Even if he's kind of slow at times-"

"Hey!" Goku yelled with a pout as he crossed his arms. "I'm faster than you!"

"he's… the best."

Sasuke tightened his fist as he soaked in everything. He had noticed that the boy was cast out in class and even in the streets, but he figured it was because of his pranks. Was there more to Naruto Uzumaki than he previously thought?

"Now'." Naruto placed his hands into the cross once more, creating a single clone. He raised a hand and chakra began to gather. The clone jumped over and began to move his hands around it, creating a sphere like ball of chakra. Sasuke reflexively gripped his wrist, channeling chakra into the single technique he was taught as his eyes turned to red once more. "Any last words? I'm done talking!"

XxxoxxX

Naruto's POV

Regardless of the severity of the match, Naruto couldn't be more happy. In the few months that he and the Uchiha were on a team together things were rocky. The two seemed to clash constantly, even before the team placements. Naruto was constantly in the boys shadow, and was reminded daily by his banshee of a teammate.

It now felt right.

He had climbed over that obstacle and let the world know. His long winded speech was to mainly buy enough time to recover chakra. He wasn't sure what was the problem, but his reserves were emptying much quicker than before.

Sasuke angrily gripped his wrist, charging chakra into it. The sound of birds chirping could be heard surrounding the arena, seemingly from nowhere yet everywhere.

Naruto's eyes slightly widened. It wasn't hard to guess where that technique came from. He charged more chakra into the ball as Sasuke's continued to grow with each passing second.

"One last attack, eh?" he asked as the wind whipped around him.

"Shut up and dodge!" Sasuke shouted as they both began to close the distance.

XxxoxxX

The genin on the sidelines were each feeling differently about this fight. Some were excited, some were bored, and others were worried that the fight was going to get it of hand.

The speech the kid made seemed to shush everyone. The Konoha genin never knew why, but they were basically taught to ignore the boy. The few that didn't could barely say they were friends more like passing acquaintances. It seemed to put s lot om their minds about their fellow graduate.

Shikamaru sighed. "This is going to get bad, real fast."

Shino nodded in agreement. "Yes. It would seem that Naruto is letting his true colors show. He no longer wishes to be Sasuke's shadow." The boy pushed his frames up his nose. "I seemed to have misjudged him."

Shikamaru grunted in response as he leaned over the railing. His eyes widened slightly after Naruto's declaration of being the best genin. "Troublesome."

Although this small boast of arrogance was overlooked by many of the genin, it caught the attention of one. Gaara's eyes narrowed at the two shinobi battling in the ring.

Although the boy was more than confident that he could beat both of them, his mother was itching for blood. He could hear her whispering in his ear. At first it was for the Uchiha, but now it was for both.

The boy began convulsing, feeling the boys dying by his sand. He could almost hear their shrieks of pain, and it made him feel so powerful. He, Gaara of the Sand, the most powerful genin destroying two wanna bees.

The boy took a step towards the railing and gripped it tightly, breathing sporadically. The cork of his gourd began to shiver, almost as if it were going to burst right off. Gaara began to growl lowly, waves of killing intent flowing off of him.

"Gaara, calm down!" Temari screamed. She ran towards her brother and triple his shoulder. "It's too early. Please, calm down!"

Gaara turned towards his sister with a snarl, causing he girl to flinch. She jumped away just in time to avoid a swipe from the boy. "Gaara!"

"Shut up!" Gaara gripped his head in agony. He stared towards the girl with a pained grin on his face. The boy's eyes were widened and red. He released a cackle into the air. He then lowered his gaze and centered it on his brother. "You."

Kankuro froze. He stumbled backwards as all the intent was focused on him. It took every last bit of chakra to remain standing under the pressure. "M-m-me?"

Gaara began to growl, even more ferociously than before. His hair seemed to stand on end as he glared at his older brother. "Your such a coward!" Sand began to fly out of his gourd rapidly, surrounding Gaara in rapid succession.

"What the Hell?" Shikamaru asked as he jumped away with Shino beside him. The two lowered into defensive stances in case something were to happen.

"Stay on your toes, Shikamaru," the Aburame whispered. Shikamaru gave a nod in response as he pressed his hands together.

"Kagemane No jutsu!"

As soon as Gaara reached forward, he was captured. The boy was straining against the jutsu, causing Shikamaru to strain to hold him.

"Run!" Shikamaru yelled.

Kankuro didn't have to be told twice. He quickly retreated from his demonic brother, scared beyond belief.

It took Gaara only a second more to break free of Shikamaru's jutsu, pursuiting his prey.

"No, Gaara!" Temari shrieked as she too took off in pursuit.

"Dammit!" Shikamaru yelled to himself. He wanted to help the kid, but then again might as well let them kill themselves off.

Shino released a big yawn, surprising the Nara.

"You okay?" He asked the bug user.

"I'm…. Tired…" Shino said as he fell to the ground.

Shikamaru furrowed his brow as a yawn came on him as well. He looked around and saw the crowd all becoming tired and instantly knew what was happening.

Shikamaru released a small amount of chakra and instantly felt awake. He gazed around and noticed that the two genin ceased fighting, and the stands decided to commence it. Enemy shinobi appeared out of no where and were being stalked by Konoha nin.

Only one thought crossed Shikamaru as he gazed around.

"I need to get to Asuma, fast."

XxxoxxX

Hey everyone. First off, im sorry about making Naruto and Sasuke's fight so terrible. Im still looking for a beta, because I honestly need help. Second, there's no Jiraiya story his time, sorry. Last chapter was a bang, I got plenty of favorites! I also got a request from a fan (I have fans, unbelievable right?) that I should do a Naruto in the mirai timeline fic. What do you all think? Any way, thanks for reading.

XxxoxxX

Jutsu:

Uzumaki misairu danmaku: Uzumaki missile barrage

Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu: fire style: Phoenix Fire jutsu

Gōkakyū no Jutsu: Great fireball jutsu

Kagemane no jutsu: shadow possession jutsu

Authors note: OK, I apologize but I'm releasing this story. I feel like before I kind of rushed it. I made it seem like Naruto was that much stronger than Sasuke…but he's not. At this point although Naruto was a growing shinobi, he wasn't near the Uchiha, at least without the Kyuubi of course. That's hard to say, considering I'm a die hard fan of the blonde. I would like your honest opinion on the fight here. I also have an… interesting twist coming in. I hope you enjoy it as much as I will# I'll respond to you guy's comments next chapter. Thanks for reading!


	18. Chapter 19

Konoha Crush!

Konoha's Third Hokage was in a state of shock. The battle going on in the arena was amazing! It had been years since her seen a battle of this caliber between genin, the last being when Kakashi faced Might Guy in their exam.

The first blow thrown was a spectacle in itself. Naruto was never a powerful boy yet when his fist connected with Sasuke's shield the power was displayed on full. The powerful blow could be heard audibly as it impacted. The most amusing part of it all was that Naruto seemed shocked.

When Sasuke recovered with an assault of kunai, he was impressed with the speed the Uzumaki to recover in time and avoid it. He was shocked however when he began to ascend above the clouds.

In that brief moment, the old man turned towards his fellow Kage. He saw the man's eyes were narrowed on Sasuke. His eyes seemed to smile as Sasuke activated his Sharingan.

As the two boys began to charge up for one more attack, Hiruzen's attention shifted towards the genin. His old ears couldn't hear what was going on but he could see that they all were tense.

"Kazekage, there seems to be commotion on the sidelines. It seems something is agitating your boy."

The younger Kage glanced towards the stands, his eyes narrowing dangerously. The boy was slowly approaching his brother with an angry look on his face. "Gaara has a short temper. The smallest things will set him off." He turned back back towards his 'ally,' ignoring the sound of chirping birds coming from the arena. "I hear he gets it from his father."

The old Hokage eyed the man warily. He could see the man's eyes lowering as the chirping increased, being amplified by a whirring sound.

Hiruzen was no fool. Being a shinobi as old and powerful as he was made him more aware of people's intentions. He could see a bloodlust in the eyes of his supposed partner, as well as poison laced in his voice. Although the man sat calmly Hiruzen could see him tensed in the smallest fraction.

"Kai!" Hiruzen said as he prevented the weak genjutsu from sending him to sleep. The old man glared towards the other village leader as an explosion resonated nearby. "Kazekage, what is the meaning of this?"

"Lord Hokage-aurgh!"

"Raido!" The Hokage turned towards his bodyguard and watched helplessly as he was pelted with two more kunai.

The man forced himself to stand, ignoring the pain shutting his body down. "Lord Hokage…. Please….. run away…" The scarred man lost consciousness and fell forward.

Before the man's body could hit the ground, Hiruzen felt an arm wrap around his neck. Before he could retaliate, a kunai was pointed dangerously at his chin.

The man felt himself being forced into the air as his captor jumped away from their seats. They landed on a nearby rooftop and were quickly surrounded by four teens.

Hiruzen noticed their forehead protector Each had musical notes on them. 'Sound shinobi,' he thought, ignoring their banter.

He looked towards his fellow leaf nin and noticed them making plans to intercept. All he needed was a little leverage, and he would quickly turn the tide in his favor. Although the Kazekage was an extremely dangerous shinobi, Hiruzen even in his old age could take the man with little effort.

"Do it."

The quartet quickly went through seals and placed their hands together.

"Ninpou! Shishi Enjin!"

Hiruzen glared as the forbidden technique was executed. A large purple rectangular prism was erected around the area the teens were standing, blocking any access to the Kage's. The Hokage watched in fear as one of his Anbu ran recklessly towards the barrier.

"Don't-" Before the words were out of his mouth, the shinobi was screaming in pain as he burst into flames. Hiruzen's stomach twisted as he saw the amount of pain the masked figure was going through.

Hiruzen tensed as he heard chuckling in his ear. Things were going bad, really bad. He could give a damn about his life, he just couldn't let them hurt his people.

"I didn't expect the Sound to betray the leaf."

"A treaty is merely a camouflage to relax an opponent." The Kazekage pulled the kunai closer, causing Hiruzen to grimace. "The petty mock battle ends here. Starting now, history will be made."

Hiruzen's features darkened as he continued to glance back. He didn't expect in the slightest that the sand would betray their treaty. Konoha was more powerful, what was there to gain in this?

"Are you trying to start a war?"

The man's eyes narrowed. "Yes," he answered without hesitation.

You should avoid conflicts, and seek resolution through negotiation. There is still time to stop this, Kazekage."

This didn't get the reaction Hiruzen was looking for. The man closed his eyes and chuckled. "Perhaps when you grow old you become used to peace… Sarutobi sensei."

The Hokage's eyes jolted open. Everything began to slowly fall into place in his mind. The stacks were to concentrated for it to be have made by the Kazekage, and to infiltrate Konoha you would need to know the layout of the village.

The old mans eye began to shake. He felt both regret, anger, and fear S to the person holding him. He could see all of the promise the man once held, and all the trauma that came with it.

"You're…"

XxxoxxX

Jiraiya grit his teeth at the scene before him. He was getting frustrated as the two genin charged their attacks.

The toad sage warned the boy to never use the attack against a friend! Granted the boy started it, but this was not the way to behave!

It was then the man was hit with a wave of killing intent. He glanced to his left, and was more than surprised to see the red haired Asuma genin being held back by a shadow, while his siblings were retreating

"What the hell," he mumbled to himself as the boy began pursuing the duo. There was something about the kid… something unnatural. His chakra was unstable. It also felt dark, as if it were craving for a battle.

"Goku." The small boy looked towards Jiraiya with raised eyebrows.

"Yes?" He responded with his ever present innocent look.

Jiraiya nodded towards the retreating genin. "I need you to follow him. Make sure he doesn't hurt anyone. Do you think you can do that?"

The small martial artist nodded as his face became serious. "My grandpa told me to always stop bad people!" A large toothy smile spread across his face. "I'll see you later!"

Jiraiya smiled at the boy as he ran. Although he wouldn't normally send a child out to battle like that, he was confident in the kids abilities. If he knew anything about the way his father trained, Goku was scores ahead of a majority of the genin in this exam.

It was then that Jiraiya received memories from a dispatched clone. There was a large snake attacking the walls of the village. This only meant one thing.

Orochimaru was here.

Jiraiya quickly dispatched chakra as he felt a genjutsu being presented on the arena. He looked to his left and saw Bulma sleeping soundly, mouth wide as her head was leaned back on the seat. He saw a majority of the Hyuuga still awake as well as a few Aburame's.

He stood to his feet, ignoring the small sting he received. Although the medic nin really helped him heal, he would still get a sting every once in a while. He could still fight however.

It was then that this theory seemed to be put to the test. In an instant more than a dozen shinobi jumped from the seemingly unconcious forms in the stands. The shinobi wore forehead protectors with either the sand or the sound symbol.

"So this is an invasion?" Jiraiya asked the shinobi. He didn't expect a response, so he wasn't surprised to not get one.

The old man gulped as he saw three of the shinobi going through seals, ending on tiger and spewing rapid fireballs at his figure.

"Dammit!" he yelled as he prepared to go through seals to defend not only him, but the people on the stands as well. In the blink of an eye he saw several figures jump in the way of the attack.

"Hakkeshou Kaiten!"

In a flash, three figures were spinning in front of him, surrounded by a bright blue aura. The flames were quickly dispatched, leaving not even a wisp.

"Gatsuuga!"

Jiraiya jumped back as he saw a pair of spiraling beings cruise past him, grinding into four of the enemy shinobi. He ignored their pained screams as they collapsed from the attack. He didn't have time to hesitate as the remaining shinobi charged.

"Hijutsu: Mushitatsumaki."

In a flash the remaining enemies were surrounded by bugs. The creatures began turning swiftly, looking more like a tornado than insects. Once the creatures cleared, the shinobi dropped to the ground in a heap.

Jiraiya turned towards the Konoha shinobi with a grin. He recognized the jounin immediately as the heads of their respective clans, as well as a few clan members.

"Thanks guys," Jiraiya said as he flashed them a thumbs up. The Inuzuka lady gave him a feral grin as she folded her arms. The Hyuuga boss gave him a slight nod while the Aburame looked in his direction.

"Anytime, Jiraiya," the Inuzuka replied. She turned towards another section of the stands and saw a fellow Konoha nin battling a duo of Sand shinobi with blades. "Looks like we've been had, huh?"

Shibi, the Aburame, slightly nodded. "It seems that our peace treaty has been nullified. The most appropriate action would be to clear out the enemy before they can do further harm.

Jiraiya nodded firmly. "That sounds like a good pl- what?" The old sage flinched as he was flooded with memories of a dispersed clone.

"Orochimaru is here." These words got a reaction from all of the surrounding shinobi.

"And how would you know this, Jiraiya?"

The older man ignored the way the Hyuuga spat his name. Hiashi seemed to have something against anyone who weren't born into the main family. He didn't mind though, the man was no fool and knew that he had no chance to best the sage.

"Shadow clones." The Hyuuga nodded at the sage whilst activating hus Byakugan, his subordinates following his lead.

"Hiashi Sama, there's more shinobi approaching," a young Hyuuga said. The leader of the clan gave nothing more than a curt nod in the boys direction.

"Hey old man, we got this." Jiraiya looked in the direction of Tsume and saw her grinning at him. "You go handle the snake, we'll protect these people."

Jiraiya flashed the lady a toothy grin and a nod. He made a note to pay the lady in the near future. For now, he needed to make sure this village still had a future.

The old sage lifted created another clone that lifted the sleeping form of Bulma. "Take her somewhere safe. There's no need for my dear friend to lose a child, an untrained one at that."

The clone nodded as he took off with the teen in his arms, in the opposite direction the original.

"Are you guys ready?" Tsume asked with a smirk. She received a nod from both of the clan leaders. "Just like old times, eh? Remember when we went on our first C ranked mission?"

Shibi nodded mechanically. "When we were ambushed by the rock shinobi?"

"Yep! Good times."

Hiashi snorted. "If memory serves me right, I believe I had to save you then."

The lady smiled, showing off her elongated canines. "Who knows, maybe I can repay your uptight ass today."

XxxoxxX

"These aren't normal shinobi."

Kakashi stood aside his childhood friend, Might Guy. They watched as the barrier was erected around the two Kage's, knowing that it wasn't a normal shield.

As much as the copy nin would like to help his village leader, he knew that he couldn't leave the people here without protection. As he scanned the crowd he could see that everyone was asleep, save for Sakura. The girl was looking around, fear apparent in her eyes.

Guy began running down the steps yet was halted as a single Anbu jumped in the way. "What are you doing? Lord Hokage is in danger!"

The Anbu placed his fingers together. The two Jonin tensed, preparing for an attack. They were surprised, however as four shinobi jumped from the seats and landed next to the Anbu.

Kakashi lazily stared back towards the Anbu with a bored expression. "What a bummer," he grumbled. He was on edge, despite his cool demeanor. If there were four shinobi so close then who knows how many were hidden among the sleeping audience.

"Was he the one who used the genjutsu?" Guy asked his eternal rival.

"Yeah, no doubt about it."

XxxoxxX

Naruto and Sasuke halted their run towards each other as they heard the explosions. They both glanced towards the rooftops and saw the barrier on top of the roof in the distance.

"What's going on?" Sasuke asked no one.

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "It looks like somethings going on up there!" He turned back to his teammate. "Hey, you're going to have to get a rain check on that ass whooping." He looked towards the stands and watched as Kakashi and Guy were quickly dispatching enemy shinobi.

Sasuke grunted in response. "Hey, whose that?" he asked himself. His trained eyes were targeting a tailed boy.

"Hmm?" Naruto followed his gaze. "Goku!" he shouted before quickly running in the same direction.

"Where are you going, Naruto?" the Uchiha yelled at his teammates back.

Naruto glanced back at the boy as he continued to run. "To help my friend!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at this, deactivating his Sharingan. In the time he knew the dobe, he'd never once heard him mention a friend. It then began to dawn on him that this could be the guy that Ino mentioned, the one who nearly beat a missing nin with a single hit.

His eyes narrowed as he sprinted after his retreating teammate. He ignored an explosion that happened behind him, as well as the screams of a pained individual.

Sasuke ran after Naruto, not worried about his safety. The only thing he wanted was to test his limits.

And not to mention to see how good the tailed kid was.

XxxoxxX

"My my. When Gaara did his thing, I was planning on stealing Sasuke and leaving." The man released an annoyed sigh. "But I guess I cant have everything my way."

"I see. So that's how it is. So your after Konoha and Sasuke."

The man tightened his grip on the old man's neck. "You believe Konoha is that important. More importantly, once Gaara awakens completely you could've seen something much more interesting. Your ignorance is the sole reason you are in this predicament. I win."

Hiruzen glanced back at his greatest failure. "It's not over yet. We do not know the results until the very end. I believe I taught you that."

The arm around Hiruzen's neck tightened. The other hand of the man reached up and gripped his face, tearing the flesh. It was then Hiruzen sae the face he recognized. The pale face, complete with purple markings around the eyes.

He saw the face of his own failure staring back at him.

"Orochimaru."

The Hokage shut his eyes. The pain of his actions caused his heart to beat rapidly. He knew he could've ended this years ago, yet his soft heart prevented him.

"I expected this day to come. But…" he turned and faced the man. "You cannot take my head so easily!"

The man simply smiled at him. "I told you, you should've picked a successor years ago." He paused, licking his kunai. "You will not make it out of this fight." The man began chuckling.

"Are you so happy that you'd let tears come out? Or do you have a heart to feel sadness for killing me, your teacher?"

"No."

Hiruzen flinched as the blade came closer to his face. He was shocked to see the man stab into his own hand. The twisted Sannin began to yawn.

"I was a bit drowsy. I've seem to waken up, however."

"That's what I thought."

To the Hokage's surprise, his captor released him and began to walk away.

"I know that you do not move for revenge. You have no goals or motives."

Orochimaru stopped moving. "I do have a goal. If I were to state it in words, I like moving things. They're boring when they don't move." Orochimaru removed the Kazekage's hat, tossing it to the side. "A windmill that isn't moving is nice from time to time, but mostly it is boring and not worth watching." He then turned towards his Sensei, his golden eyes glaring into Hiruzen's brown. "I plan to turn those windmills with the wind called the destruction of Konoha."

Hiruzen smirked at the man as he gripped his hat. With the amount of killing intent being thrown onto him, the mightiest Jonin would have buckled. "You haven't changed at all, I see."

Orochimaru smiled at the older man. "To think I get to fight you again…"

Hiruzen moved his eyes to the side, noticing the four teens erecting a barrier to protect themselves from the inside. He was silently thankful, he wouldn't want to hurt anyone, even if they were students of his current enemy.

"Looks like I wont be leaving easily."

Orochimaru snorted. "You must be kidding. To you, it'll be harder to fight with other people interfering."

The Fourth smirked. Of course his student would know him well.

A breeze flew through the battle field, causing both combatants clothing to bellow in the wind. They stared at each other, searching for weaknesses in the others stance. Of course, neither could find one.

In a crack of the tiles of the roof, both men sprinted towards each other.

XxxoxxX

Hey guys! Yes, I'm finally updating. The story is finally reaching a big moment where the differences are going tk be major. The fights will be different, the character are developing differently, and I'm beyond excited. Thank you to everyone's review, you guys are why I write this.

XxxoxxX

Titop: I'd like to thank you for your review. I agree that the fights are short, they are my greatest weakness. Reading back on it, I agree that Goku could've tanked those attacks now that I read back on it. I promise that I'll try and keep him up to power level. And I'm not going to give up on this, I promise.

Okidd22: thanks for your review. I would accept you as a beta, but first I have to see a story that you wrote. If it's my style I'll let you work on it.

Naruto namikaze uchiha: I will!

NinjaFang1331: Thanks. You really help me to keep writing. You're a great fan.

Gamelover41592: thanks again, you are one of my most loyal supporters. You keel me wanting to write more!


	19. Alpha Wolf

Alpha Wolf

Yamcha sighed in his cell. He was bored out of his mind! He was laying in his single bunk, staring at the gray ceiling.

He actually should be happy. He was released from the T&amp;I division a few days ago. They had no reason to hold him since he was not a threat to the village. He was nothing more than a common thief, one that was taken down by genius nonetheless. It was a blow to his pride, but it was worth being away from Ibiki.

He thought he would be in big trouble for harming two clan members but to his surprise he wasn't . The Hyuuga leader chose not to hold anything against him, much to his surprise considering he beat her pretty bad. The Inuzuka and he worked out a deal, he would spend a month in prison and then would work for them for the next year. He'd choose cleaning poop over prison any day.

In his free time, he had plenty of time to work out. He gained a bit of speed and power in his few days in the cell. With nothing else to do, why not work on your figure?

Yamcha was really concerned with what was going on outside the prison walls. With his keen sense of hearing he could make out the signs of a battle. Occasionally the building would shake from nearby explosions.

"Take THIS!"

Yamcha instinctively jumped up from his bed. Not even a second later, the wall burst open. A body came crashing through moments later.

Before his mind could register the situation he jumped forward and grabbed the figure, landing in a crouch. His eyes glared into the large hole in the wall. Although most prisoners were taking this opportunity to escape, he was more on guard for a possible attack. He was startled when he felt the figure roughly lifting out of his arms. As they stood with their back to him, he could only see the long brown hair in a ponytail. The person was on guard, lowered into a feral stance. One that seemed rather familiar…

"Are you ok?" he asked. The figure turned towards him and he froze.

There stood a figure around his age. On each cheek was a red tattoo, one that seemed almost tribal. They wore a flak jacket that was open displaying their…

Oh, did he mention it was female? And an attractive one at that.

Yamcha quickly back pedaled until his back was against the cell bars. His breathing was quick as he stared at his hands. 'I just… And she's… Oh no not again! Focus, Yamcha focus!'

Yamcha gazed up to see the girl Watching him with a raised brow. "Are you ok?"

The desert bandit tried to talk, but only could stammer. As he continued to speak (or attempt to) he noticed something that made him tense up. "Look out!"

The girl turned and saw the trail of shuriken coming her way. She did a backflip as she went through seals. "Ino no tsume!" In an instant a short blue burst of chakra erupted from her fingernails making them appear more like claws. As she landed, she burst back into the air towards her attacker. The lady swiped away another volley of chakra and released a roar as she tore into the chest of the nin.

The girl glanced back. "Thanks."

Yamcha smiled, looking rather goofy. "No problem!" His expression turned into one of cool confidence. "The next one is mine."

"I hope you do better than the other inmates. It sounds like a massacre down there."

Yamcha's face tightened as he ran through the hole. As he glanced around he could see a handful of bodies all wearing the same orange uniform as he. They were either old or sick, the few that probably didn't have a chance at escaping. The shinobi were now picking off a few more of the stragglers. There were only five shinobi, each with a headband that contained a music note. Yamcha snorted.

She was wrong. It wasn't a massacre. At least not yet.

In practiced ease Yamcha was to the right of the nearest ninja. As he was lowering his blade to decapitate a young man, a punch to the jaw quickly put him out and he crumpled to the ground. The sound caused the other shinobi to turn their attention towards him. In an instant he was surrounded.

The lady stepped forward, but he quickly waved a hand, to terrified to look in her direction. She stepped back with a huff, crossing her arms across her chest.

Yamcha glanced to his left and right, before meeting the gaze of the shinobi in front of him. The blonde smirked at him, waving his scimitar in the air.

"You're going to fight all alone, kid?" the sound shinobi asked with a snicker. "You're better off letting your girlfriend help."

Yamcha turned beet red at the remark. He could feel heat rising in his face. "She's not my girl friend!"

"You got that right…" The lady mumbled, causing Yamcha to sweat even harder.

The blonde shinobi snickered, which was followed by his teammates. Yamcha took this time to gaze behind him. He noticed that two of the shinobi were going through signs.

"Katon! Hoteri Ougigata no Jutsu!"

Yamcha quickly went through three signs. "Daton! Doryūheki!" He slammed his hands into the ground and a slab of rock shot out immediately halting some of the embers. He jumped backwards and ducked as another few shot in his direction. With a grunt he jumped into the air, only to be intercepted by a shinobi. The man held a small blade and swiped it at the teen.

Yamcha grabbed the man's wrist on instinct. As the man stared at him in shock Yamcha threw a vicious head butt, instantly making him go limp. He twisted the body behind him and cringed as it was pelted with shuriken. He tossed the body and fell into a roll but instantly jumped back as he was assaulted from the front. He danced away from a flurry of swipes from the trash talking blonde, getting more irritated by the second.

Yamcha cried in pain as he was punched from the side, knocking him off balance. He continued to roll, narrowly avoiding the blade. "Doton: Iwa Tounyuu no Jutsu!" Yamcha gripped a rock and charged chakra into it before chucking it at the shinobi that punched him. The man grunted as he was hit in the face. A wet, sickening crunch could be heard as he fell backwards, never to move again.

The remaining shinobi landed in front of Yamcha, a couple of feet ahead of him. He slowly climbed to his feet, wiping a trail of blood from his lip. A wide smirk crossed his features. "Is that all you got?"

The three sound nin growled in frustration at the bandit. The blonde glanced to his left and right, then his green eyes met Yamcha's black. "Beta formation!"

Quicker than Yamcha's eyes could follow, the three shinobi were in action. The first shinobi to meet him was a red head, swinging with chakra enhanced fists. Yamcha danced around each blow, but the guy was too fast for him to try and attack. Yamcha dodged a kick to his chest, jumping back and rolling onto his feet. He quickly dropped into a split, releasing a light squeal as another kick whooshed over his head.

The next attack was a bicycle kick. Yamcha raised both arms and blocked, grunting from the force of the attack. As the two battled for superiority, Yamcha noticed a gleam coming from the left. He lowered his arms and quickly pushed up, throwing the shinobi off balance. He punched the shinobi in the crotch as hard as he could and grimaced as he wailed while holding his jewels. He then Once more jumped away from the blonde blade wielder. He danced and dodged another salvo of swipes.

"What's the matter? Getting tired?" the shinobi asked with a smirk. He swiped once more diagonally and the horizontally, annoyed that the teen was still dodging. "My guess is that a few more seconds and you'll be diced meat!"

Yamcha snorted as he dodged again, noticing a hole in the man's defense. He kicked the shinobi in the wrist, smirking as the blade sailed in the air. He twirled and kicked him in the chest, knocking the man backwards. With a triumphant huff, he caught the blade before it touched the ground.

"Well well, somebody's missing their weapon." He took a step towards the man, resulting in him scrambling the backwards. "What's the matter, you don't know any jutsu?"

The shinobi continued to crawl away as Yamcha neared him. His heart pounded faster than ever before. He couldn't manipulate chakra, his coils were much to small! "Get away from me, you disgusting maggot!"

Yamcha smirked even wider. This guy was nothing more than a bully, relying on his comrades to support him while he inflicted terror upon others. He quickened his pace until he was standing over the figure. He snarled at the cowering shinobi as he raised the blade. "You never could've beaten me."

"Doton:Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu!"

Before Yamcha could react, he was pulled into the earth until only his head was visible. The blade clanged next to his head. He glared to his right and noticed the third member of the group was crawling out of the ground with a sick smile on his face.

The blonde scrambled to his feet and gripped his sword. "About time you show up, Strata! Know that I will be reporting this to Lord Orochimaru!"

The man known as Strata chuckled as he stuffed his hands in his pocket. "Yeah, and I'm sure he wouldn't mind that he put a wuss in charge of this team." This caused the leader to growl in anger.

"Hurry up and kill that guy!" the third member yelled as he stood, still rubbing his crotch. "He cheated!"

"Whatever." Blondie lifted his blade and glared at the snarling Yamcha. "Told you I was gonna kill ya."

Yamcha glared defiantly. If he was going to die, he would do it with honor. As the man began to swing, Yamcha grimaced slightly.

"Gatsuuga!"

Yamcha heard the familiar call and was surprised as he saw a pair of spiraling forms shoot past him. The two lackeys released cries of anguish as their midsections were dug into. Their blood splattered as the bodies were forced into the air. As they landed in two heaps, he saw the spirals stop spinning.

Yamcha's jaw dropped as he saw the same girl from earlier. The other typhoon turned into a large grey dog with a white underbelly. The dog growled ferociously at the blonde, who instantly backed away in fear.

"Guremaru! Kimaru! Dig him up!"

Yamcha was shocked as two dogs that looked like the first jumped beside him. They quickly began to throw up the dirt and Yamcha was free in a few seconds. He jumped out and landed nimbly, giving the dogs a nod in thanks.

"Now, I guess I can finish this match." Yamcha smirked before the cowering shinobi. He lowered into his stance. "You've pissed off the wrong wolf, buddy."

The ninja took a step back. He prepared to run, but halted as he heard growling. Quicker than he could register he was surrounded by the ninken. They formed a semi circle, ready to attack the coward. The man turned back to Yamcha, fear evident in his face. "Prepare to die you bastard!" He charged towards Yamcha, frantically waving his blade.

A glint could be seen in Yamcha's eyes. He side stepped a sloppy swing, sending the man stumbling forward. He reached for the shinobi's wrist and snapped it, ignoring the shriek that ensued. "Get a load of this! Wolf fang fist!" Yamcha began to batter the man senseless with a salvo of attacks. With the final hit he released a howl and thrust his cupped hands into the chest of the shinobi, sending him flying through the air.

The kunoichi raised an eyebrow at the barrage. She had to admit, that was a technique that could be very beneficial to her clan. Their use of claws would leave a shinobi shredded! She stepped towards the man and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Good job," she said. She could feel the toned muscles cringe at her touch. "What's your name?"

Yamcha dry heaved. 'She's. .. touching me!' he thought nervously. He quickly jumped away, putting space between the two. He could hear a whine come from one of the dogs. "M-my name's Yamcha!"

The lady quirked an eyebrow. "The desert bandit?" At the nod, she smirked. "You're the guy that beat my little brother."

Yamcha's eyes widened at this revelation. Why hadn't he put it together? The marks, the jutsu, the dogs! He immediately began backing away, only to be nudged back forwards by one of the dogs. "I-im sorry!"

The lady raised a hand to silence him. "We can deal with this later. You're a fighter, so you can repay me with assistance." The lady looked at her dogs and nodded. They all stood, ready to sprint. She gave one look over her shoulder. "The name's Hana, by the way. Try to keep up, will ya?"

XxxoxxX

Run.

This was the only thing on Kankuro's mind. The sand genin was sprinting for his life from his deranged brother. The cool wind of the evening air brushed across his face as he sprinted away.

Kankuro dodged a wave of sand that quickly reduced the tree he was on moments ago into splinters. He rolled under a hail of shuriken made of sand and bounced back, continuing his run.

"Stop running you coward!" Kankuro ignored the voice. He knew that avoiding fighting Gaara would bring complications. The boy was much too ruthless to be denied a chance at battle. He was silently hoping that Gaara would have been happy to avoid showing his skills.

The angered yelling trailing him proved otherwise.

Kankuro was doing his best to avoid his pursuer. He was relatively fine, but it would be crazy to say he made it unscathed. He had a number of scratches littering his body from both sand and broken branches that he narrowly dodged. His left arm was hurt badly from a hail of sand shuriken that was too quick to dodge, leaving it almost useless.

"Gaara, stop!" Kankuro didn't have to look back to know who was screaming. He never heard his sister sound so afraid. Desperation was evident in her voice as she called out to her youngest sibling.

The young puppet master looked from side to side, searching for a place to hide. He was outside the gate in the center of a plain field. He tried to control his breathing, but there was a reason he wasn't a taijutsu specialist. He was never good at this much pursuing, he preferred fighting from a distance.

Kankuro flinched as he heard a pair of sandals click behind him. He slowly turned, his body quivering all the while. He grit his teeth tightly as he stared into Gaara's eyes.

Gaara held a feral smirk towards his brother. Kankuro felt fear shoot up his spine. He could tell that the demon was on the verge of escaping, and he witnessed the power on more than one occasion.

He would definitely die.

Kankuro glanced towards Temari as she landed behind Gaara. He could see the look of fear on her face directed towards him. Although Gaara was their sibling, they felt like they were the only children of the Kazekage. Gaara was so distanced from them and threatened to kill them on multiple occasions.

"Gaara… please stop this!" Temari yelled as she took another step towards him.

Gaara began to chuckle while gripping his head. "Mother wants his blood!"

The blonde took another brave step towards Gaara. "Gaara, that isn't our mother! She would never approve of this!" Gaara began to convulse, falling to one knee in seemingly pain. Temari placed a hand on his shoulder. "Please don't hurt him."

Kankuro's eyes widened as he saw Gaara's facial expression. He seemed to be angered the minute the hand was on his shoulder. "Temari, move!"

"Don't TOUCH ME!" The young Jinchuuriki swung back and sand followed his movement, causing a screech from his oldest sibling. The girl was sent airborne as her body was smacked by the sand. She landed hard into a tree, causing it to burst immediately on impact. Her momentum planted her into another one.

"Why, Gaara?" Kankuro yelled as he held a fist up. "Your beef is with me, so why hit her?"

Gaara slowly turned back towards his only brother. Kankuro could see a crazed look in the boys eyes as he stared a hole in him. The boy began to chuckle, which quickly turned into a manic laugh.

"I am the only person that deserves to exist! I am powerful, and you are a coward!" He looked down at his hands and continued to speak in a softer tone. "Do you know why you are weak? It's because you're worrying about other people. I fight for me, that is why I will forever exist!"

Kankuro grit his teeth harder at the comment. As Gaara rose his head he could see the beginning stages of the sealed beast escaping. The boys icy blue eyes changed to a golden glare. The teeth on the right side of his face sharpened and around his right eye was beginning to look like sand. With practiced ease he quickly dropped his puppet, whirling it in front of him. The puppet resembled a human with three eyes and four arms, as well as shaggy brown hair. As the mouth clattered open a row of sharp teeth could be seen.

Gaara began to smile, his sharp teeth causing his opponent to flinch. "Yes… Yes mother…" The sand around Gaara began to rattle as it rose.

Kankuro quickly jumped back, his puppet sprung to life as it dove towards his youngest sibling. Gaara glanced at the puppet with mild irritation. When the wooden soldier closed the distance, a blade came out of each hand.

Gaara swiped his hand and a stream of sand shot towards the puppet. Kankuro twirled his pinky, resulting in it to spin at an accelerated rate, knocking the sand away. Another wave of sand was slipped under by Crow. The mechanical warrior chattered as it quickly shot towards the red head, its blades stretched out ahead.

Gaara lifted a hand and the sand on the ground shot up towards the puppet. The sand caught it by the leg, halting its momentum mere inches from stabbing him in the head.. Kankuro twitched his index finger and the leg quickly dispatched, causing the younger boy to snarl in annoyance. Sand quickly covered the missing appendage.

Kankuro grunted as he channeled chakra into the leg, causing it to explode. Gaara grunted as he was pushed back by the blast with his arms raised to protect his face. The blast caused him to slide back a few feet, but not any worse for wear.

Gaara scowled, more out of annoyance than anger. "That's enough!" he roared. He thrust his hand towards the puppet. In a flash the sand surrounding him shot forward.

Kankuro quickly pulled back his hands, causing Crow to turn tail and get away from the flying dirt. The puppet shot kunai as it retreated from its limbs, each being deflected by the pursuing sand.

The puppeteer grimaced as he felt a tug on his chakra string. He quickly released them as he jumped backwards. A trail of sand shot towards him off of the string and barely missed him. His bones froze as he heard a loud crunch.

The elder sibling stared in horror at what was left of his puppet. Gaara had a fist held out towards it. The puppet was dangling in the air, surrounded by sand. Wooden limbs were falling at a steady pace, each clattering as they hit the ground. Gaara grit his teeth as he tightened his fist, resulting in more creaking sounds to emerge. Kankuro flinched as the machine burst into saw dust.

Gaara turned towards his opponent, a feral smile on his face. Kankuro took a step back, raising his arms in a defensive position.

"Now," Gaara said as he took a step towards his brother, "no more games."

The two stared each other down. Gaara took a step towards Kankuro, and then another.

'No,' thought Kankuro. 'It can't end like this!' He scanned his surroundings as his brother continued to slowly move forward. The way he was smiling at him was terrifying!

When Gaara was a few feet from his brother he raised a hand. The sand around him rattled in anticipation, causing Kankuro to immediately tense up. His smile disappeared as his eyes narrowed. "Die."

As the sand shot forward, Kankuro switched with a nearby rock. He grimaced as it was crushed, but used the opportunity to toss a log at him with a chakra string. As the boy screamed in pain he took off in a run away from his deranged sibling.

As Kankuro ran he thought of the many possibilities in which he could win this battle, and the results were none. Without his puppet he was completely defenseless against the beast known as Gaara. If he had Temari they could've at least stalled time until their sensei was here, but Gaara put an end to that plan a while ago.

In the middle of his thinking, Kankuro was suddenly tripped up by a small hand made of sand. He shouted as he fell and landed hard on his stomach. He attempted to stand but was halted as he felt something crawling up his leg.

This wasn't going to be good.

"No more running."

Those three words made Kankuro's heart stop. He heard his brother say them to many shinobi and civilians alike that he captured trying to run from them. The results always ended the same, and he even he knew what was next yet he was unprepared for it.

"N-no! Gaara, please!" The teen began to crawl away, but the sand gripping his legs gave him no room for escape. The distant look in his brother's eyes shook him to the core. The setting sun behind his head only made him look even more ominous. "I'm your brother Gaara!"

The red head seemed to flinch at that comment. His eyes narrowed as he rose a hand above the cowering puppeteer. "I told you I would kill you." He clenched his fist shut, and smirked as he heard the ensuing screams of pain.

XxxoxxX

"Rasengan!"

Jiraiya continued to run as he put a hole through another shinobi. The body was blasted backwards and hit a building, sending it crumbling to the ground. His goal was to reach the gates as fast as he could.

He knew that the gates needed to stay standing. If they fell, other villages would take this for weakness and attempt to attack.

He'd rather die before he let that happen.

Jiraiya grimaced as pain shot up his leg. He was relatively fine, but all of this running was tearing open the wound. The shinobi he faced so far were mere cannon fodder. They were sloppy and most died without the use of a single jutsu.

Jiraiya ducked as a hail of shuriken came soaring over his head. He didn't look back as he threw three. He could hear the groans of pain as the bodies hit the ground with a thud. "Suna shinobi aren't what they used to be," he grumbled as he kicked another.

After a few more minutes, he finally reached his destination. He landed on the wall. Ignoring the sounds of battle, he gazed ahead. He was just in time. He could see a massive snake quickly approaching. The gate.

"Orochi… that slithery bastard!" he growled in annoyance. There was only one thing to do in this situation. He bit his thumb and began to go through seals.

"Dodonpa!"

Jiraiya jumped from the wall as a thin beam impacted it. He could feel the heat of the blast as it seared past him. The ensuing explosion shook him out of his stupor.

The sage turned and glared. As the smoke cleared he could make out five figures. There was a small boy, he looked to be a mere toddler. His skin was white and he had bright red cheeks. Another was a fat teen with long silver strands of hair, and a cocky grin to match it. The next was a giant of a man, standing at least 6 feet, all muscle. Beside him was a older man, around 30. He had a mane of brown hair,, and a large beard to match.

The fifth figure was the one that struck him the hardest.

Standing in the center was a pink clad man. He had a long black ponytail, and a mustache to go with it. On his face was a smile that oozed confidence.

"Jiraiya, how nice to see you again."

Jiraiya's eyes narrowed. He had plenty of memories of the assassin standing before him. "Tao," he said in a calm voice.

The general smiled even wider. "Ah, how I love these reunions!"

XxxoxxX

A/N: Cliff hanger! Sorry for being gone for so long, it's been a lot of family issues. This chapter is pretty short, but hey, I tried. I also realized I deleted a chapter that wasn't supposed to… so I'm going to have to make that for you guys. Yeah, hope you enjoy this one. Sorry that neither of our heroes was in it. Anyway, read and review!


	20. Back from the Dead

Back from the Dead

A tense silence wafted through the air. Two shinobi glared at one another, one face laced with amusement, the other with disappointment. Their tattered clothes shook in the wind, the only sound being made.

The two shinobi were looking for any weakness that they could apply to the other, and neither were surprised to not find a single one. They both knew that the first bout was merely a feeling out process. They acknowledged each others strength and neither could land a significant hit on the other.

The old Hokage was having a harsh internal conflict. On one hand he didn't want to fight his student. Even while the man glared at him with an overconfident smirk, he could only see the eyes of his shy student. The boy was so sweet that he wouldn't hurt a fly, literally. He could remember the child scolding Jiraiya for squishing a beetle.

As he remembered this, he could also see when things went wrong. After the death of his parents he became less affectionate towards his team, and it only got worse as the years went on. Becoming an Anbu only crazed the boy even farther, making him more interested in learning more and more jutsu. After a while the interest turned into a dream, and the dream turned into an obsession.

He had so much faith in the boy! The talent he displayed was beyond anything he'd ever seen in his years. When it was time to elect a replacement Hokage, his first choice was the man. He believed Orochimaru was powerful enough to help to lead the village yet his motives weren't correct. He cringed at the thought of the hundreds of people his student killed and experimented on. If only he'd ended this sooner, many lives would have been saved!

"Stop looking at me like that Sarutobi Sensei," the pale nin said with a smirk. "If I were a betting man, I'd wager that you were reminiscing about something." He licked his lips as he continued. "But that's more of Tsunade's forte, hm? Fufufu."

The older shinobi frowned tightly. He knew that the snake was trying to get a rise out of him by bringing up the past, and he wouldn't allow it.

Orochimaru's smile broadened. He could see that slight shift in his former sensei's face and that was enough to interest him for now. His eyes sharpened. "Perhaps we should stop fooling around. This isn't an academy class."

The older man returned the smile. "You're right." He gripped his hat and tossed it into the wind along with his robe in one fluid motion. Below the robe he was garbed in a black jumpsuit with mesh portions on the wrists and below his knees. On his right arm was a gauntlet that was green. He wore an armored hood with a Konoha bandana on it.

Orochimaru grinned dangerously at the old man. "So, you were expecting your death."

The old Hokage chose to ignore the snake sennin as he lowered into a fighting stance. As much as his mind was protesting with him, his heart was set. He would maim his student, and if it was necessary then he'd kill him.

Orochimaru gripped his robe and tossed it, revealing his battle attire. The Third Hokage tensed, mentally preparing himself for the battle to come.

The two shinobi entered a fierce stare down. To anyone within range, they would be able to hear the chakra emanating from the two powerful being. A slight cracking could be heard from the tiles on the roof and it began to spread quickly as their chakra escalated. Under their feet resembled spider webs as the chakra was being exerted.

Orochimaru chuckled. He was beyond amused that the old man had this much fight in him. It didn't matter, though. He preferred playing with his food before eating it. "I'm not going easy on you just because you're old."

The other shinobi stared back, unflinching at the killing intent being directed at him. "I was not expecting a handicap. I may make you redo the academy based on your performance."

The snake continued to grin as pieces of tile continued to rise from the amazing display of power. "Do not disappoint me."

The old man only smiled in response.

The two continued to stare at each other while displaying confident smirks. Seconds went by that felt like centuries. Each second the chakra continued to grow, destroying more and more of the roof. At a silent signal, the two shinobi sprinted towards one another simultaneously.

Sarutobi threw a shuriken forward and the two began to go through seals. Hiruzen was the first to speak. "Shuriken! Kagebunshin no jutsu!" The single weapon quickly turned into three dozens and began to fly towards the pale shinobi.

Orochimaru clapped his hands together. "Kuchiyose! Edo Tensai!"

"That move is-!"

The God of Shinobi stammered, but instantly caught himself. He quickly became worried. He knew that jutsu. His eyes narrowed a margin. Hell, he was taught by the creator of it!

"First!" Hiruzen's eyes widened as a coffin rose out of the ground, catching the shuriken. "Second!" Another coffin rose, and the old Kage had a feeling he knew who were in them at that point.

'I have to stop the third one!' Hiruzen gathered chakra to counter the rising coffin.

"Thi-."

"Kame no ato! Fukakaina bekko!"

Both of the fighting shinobi looked up and were shocked at the sight of a large black form spiralling from the air. When it hit the barrier it burst into flames, yet never stopped spinning. Sparks flew off of the shield as the spinning object continued to dig into it, eventually creating a hole large enough to slide in. The two shinobi quickly jumped away as the object came crashing down, right on top of the trio of tombs.

Orochimaru's smirk grew when he saw a small distortion amongst the coffins.

Hiruzen stared at the object in silent thanks, yet didn't relax. This could be a new foe, so it wouldn't be wise to let his guard down. To he and Orochimaru's amazement a jet of water flew straight out of the object into the air and landed on the shell, instantly dousing the flames with a hiss. The boiling water caused a thick foggy steam to cover the roof

Upon closer inspection he could see that the object was a shell. It was jet black and had spikes on the corners. On the shell was the kanji for kame.

Suddenly, a banging could be heard on the object. "Lemme out! Lemme out!" a high pitched voice hollered.

In a large pop a figure flew out of the shell, hollering like he was about to die. The old Kage recognized the shrieking figure. A large huff could be heard from the object causing the immediate steam to disperse, giving a clear view of the object. Under the rock he could hear a deep hiss. His eyes narrowed as the flying object landed in a heap in front of him.

The old figure sat up, rubbing a knot that formed on his head. "Hey, how ya doin'?" he asked with a smile. "You know, it would've helped if you caught me!"

"Master Roshi," the Hokage said with a curt nod. "I must thank you for your assistance. Things were really getting ugly."

The older man laughed. "Oh, you know me! Always in time ta save the day haha!"

Hiruzen sighed. How could one of the most powerful men in the world be… this? It was really unfitting for a living legend. Of course he enjoyed his dirty literature and the occasional puff of his pipe, but at least it was in private. 'Speaking of which…' He reached into his pocket and casually grabbed the pipe, inching it towards his mouth with a chuckle. He inhaled the tobacco, igniting it with the snap of his fingers. He calmed a fraction when the fire entered his belly.

"Now, back to business." The old man stood up and wiped the dust from him. "Where's the snake guy?"

"I guessssss you aren't talking about me, are you?" Four legs came out of the shell as it rolled onto its stomach. Out of one side, the head of a horned tortoise popped, glancing lazily around. The head was a rough gray with three blunt horns, resembling a triceratops. It slowly bobbed it's head towards Hiruzen who returned the gesture.

From the other end a black snake head extended, glaring at the old hermit. The snake was extremely thin and jet black. A long green tongue slip beneath the lips of the creature.

"Of course not, Xuan. And thanks, Gui." The tortoise gave him a slow nod as it disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The martial artist gave Hiruzen an apologetic glance. "I'm sorry for disrespecting the dead like that." He looked towards the splintered wood left from the large summon. "It's hard to aim when you're spinning that fast, ya know?"

"No need for apologies, Master Roshi." The Hokage released a sigh. "It's probably for the best. Those poor souls would have been fighting against their will."

The old hermit scratched his bald head in obvious confusion. "Wait… how can the dead fight? Is he some kinda puppeteer or somethin'?"

"No," Sarutobi said with a shake of his head. "It's a forbidden jutsu created by my old sensei, Tobiramu Senju."

"Ah, little Tobi! That was one fast kid, I tell you what!" His face then hardened. "What does it do?"

Hiruzen swallowed a lump in his throat. "It revives the dead, with a living host as sacrifice." He stared ahead into the smaky haze, trying to sense out his opponent as he spoke. "My sensei couldn't complete the technique. The reanimated shinobi would do what they pleased, usually attacking him."

Roshi nodded stiffly. "That explains why it's forbidden, add to that that you use a living person as a sacrifice." A large, nearly toothless grin spread across his face. "Guess my accident was a blessing in disguise, huh?"

A chuckling could be heard from the other side of the roof. The reverse summoning left the area smoky, obscuring the view from the two fighters.

"So, the rumors are true. I heard the Legendary Master Roshi was here but I didn't believe it. No matter, now I can really test my abilities!"

Roshi began to laugh. "Didn't I just sit on two of your summons?" His face scrunched in thought as he rubbed his chin. "Or was it three? I'm really getting old…" he grumbled. His features brightened once more. "Sorry about that!"

The pale faced ninja stepped from the smoke with a wide smirk. "No need to apologize. I should actually thank you."

Hiruzen's eyes narrowed dangerously. As much as he knew his student, he wasn't one to joke. "Thank him for what?"

Orochimaru laughed heartily with his hands on his hips. "With your dramatic entrance and comic relief you gave me ample time to summon another." He paused at the reaction the two shinobi made. Roshi's eyes narrowed while his old sensei's widened.

Orochimaru casually stepped to the side and there stood a coffin behind him. His smirk widened at the look of shock on the two men's faces.

"This body took me a while to complete. It was barely salgeable," he shrugged his shoulders, "but, when there's a will there's a way." The pale Sannin snickered at the comment.

The current Hokage glared intently at his student. He then began to speak calmly. "Orochimaru, who is in the casket?"

Orochimaru flicked his hair across his shoulder with a grin. "Don't worry, sensei, I assure you that it's not someone you would know. However," his grinning face turned towards the other fighter, "I cannot say the same to you."

Roshi swallowed at the comment. Who could the man be talking about? There were many enemies that he obtained throughout his life, and only one that he feared. His hands balled into fists as he glared towards the younger shinobi. He began to shake slightly. His voice wavered as he spoke. "Don't tell me… is it the Demon King?"

Orochimaru scoffed at the question. "If only. His cells were too hard to find unfortunately. But why ask," behind him the coffin creaked, widening a slight margin. "Your answer will arrive shortly."

Hiruzen quickly summoned his battle staff and lowered into a defensive stance. He didn't know who was in it, but if the turtle hermit knew him then he had to have some skill. He glanced back towards his ally and saw him lower into a stance.

"And now," The lid began to fall forward revealing the figure inside, "let the fun began!"

Before the lid could fall off it was hit with a small blast of light. The burst of splinters and smoke was suddenly divided as the figure burst through the center.

Master Roshi's eyes widened at the sight of the masked figure in front of him. He reached forward, wanting to touch the person to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.

The figure landed a few meters ahead of them into a kneel, his face lowered. He slowly rose to both feet while lifting his gaze on to the opposition. On his face was a fox mask that showed no features, yet the hermit didn't need to see the face. The man slowly removed his mask. He glanced towards the two fighters and his small beady eyes trained on Roshi. A large smile stretched across his old face.

"Ah, hello Master!"

XxxoxxX

A black haired boy was running at a rapid pace through the forest. His normally cheerful face was serious, which was rare for the child.

Goku could smell blood and smoke in the air. The smell was sickening to his enhanced senses. Behind him he ignored the sounds of battle, he could clearly hear metal clashing and explosions. The most worrying sound was pained shrieks.

It was in his nature to help anyone in pain, no matter the danger. The only thing stopping him was Jiraiya's orders to follow the three people that ran off.

'_Goku, sometimes people will get hurt. Although I'm sure that Pop's taught you to help them all, the only way to truly help them is to get to the root of the problem. The more people you stop to save, the more people that could potentially get hurt.'_

The dense boy didn't understand what tree roots had to do with anything, but he could get the gist of what the old man was saying. If someone as powerful as he couldn't save everyone then he was unsure if he himself were capable of this feat.

Goku pestered his current sensei on a daily occasion to spar with him, to which the elder shinobi repeatedly declined. He always told Goku that he was tired or working on his book. It wasn't until last week that he finally relented to the request.

Goku told him to not hold back, more than sure that he could beat him. He started the fight, racing towards the elder with a fist cocked back. Jiraiya stood with his arms crossed, not even respecting the kid's quick attack.

With the tap on the forehead Goku was on the ground in pain.

Goku smiled at the thought. It only made him want to fight the man again!

It was strange, but Goku could tell that the people he were following held some importance. If not then he wouldn't have been tasked to follow them.

The boy jumped into a clearing and could instantly tell a battle had taken place. Some trees were knocked over and sand seemed to be spewed everywhere. He whooped as he saw that he was near an apple tree and jumped, grabbing two. When he landed he took a big bite, smiling at the sweet taste.

As he was investigating the area he heard a muffled cough. He quickly ran to the source of the sound and was shocked at the sight.

Laying in the remains of a destroyed oak was a girl. She was blonde and her hair was in four spiky pig tails. She was groaning in pain and a trail of blood was leaking from her mouth.

When the figure coughed again, Goku quickly knelt beside her. He gently lifted her head. "Are you ok?"

The girl coughed once more, blood spewing from her mouth. Goku ignored the few drops that hit his face, more concerned with the well being of the figure than his own appearance. She continued to hack and he held her tightly. After a few seconds the coughing stopped.

The girl opened her teal eyes and stared at the figure holding her. Her first instinct was fear, but she quickly calmed after noticing that he bore no head band.

"Feeling better?" Her heart jumped at the soft voice. She could hear real concern in it, and the smile he gave her made her warm inside. She felt her cheeks begin to redden.

"Get away from me you freak!" She weakly pulled away from him and began to fall back again, but he caught her with a giggle.

"Be careful!" he chastised her. "You aren't feeling too good."

Temari relented struggling and chose to glare at the boy. It irked her that even when she glared, he only continued to smile. 'What is with this guy?'

"My name's Goku! What's yours?"

Temari's glare softened slightly, but she continued to put on a brave front. "It doesn't matter."

Goku began to snicker once more. "Since you have that big fan, I'll call you Fanny!"

The girl's face brightened with both anger and embarrassment. She opened her mouth to speak and began to yell profusely. "Don't call me such a stupid name! My name is Te-"

Both figures tensed as they heard a blood curling scream. Temari's eyes widened; she recognized that voice! "Kankuro!" She quickly lifted up but was instantly hit with a monstrous headache.

"Calm down!" Goku gently laid her back on the ground and stood up. "I'll go find out what that scream was, ok?"

Temari looked into the child's eyes and saw determination. He barely knew her and yet was going in to fight for her protection! He turned to leave. "Goku, don't!" the boy halted and glanced back. She looked away from him, her eyes distant. "If you go… you'll be killed to."

Goku gave her another snicker as he scratched the back of his head. "Don't worry, I'm really strong!"

Although she didn't know the boy she felt a strange trust coming from him. She knew the strength her brother possessed but this stranger seemed so confident that she had no choice but to have faith in him.

She looked away from the kid as he began stretching. She could feel her body getting hot. Was this… a crush? She quickly shook the notion out of her head. She must have had a concussion from his sibling's attack.

"Don't worry, Fanny' I'll be back soon!" With a snicker and a peace sign, the boy was gone.

Temari forced herself to sit up, resting her back against the remains of the destroyed tree. She released a sigh of relief once he was out of her eyesight.

She secretly hoped that she would see the boy again. Not that she liked him, or anything. He was much to young for her taste, she told herself. She closed her eyes and for some reason could only see his wide smile. The toothy grin brought a small smile to her face.

"Hurry up, Teme! He's got to be up there!"

"Shut up! If you were smart you wouldn't waste your energy until the fight!"

Temari groaned. She recognized the annoying voice of the blonde, and could vaguely tell that the other belonged to the Uchiha. As the petty argument got closer, she only got more annoyed.

"Well maybe if you trained more, you could keep up!"

"Slow down, there's someone ahead."

In less than a second both figures entered the area. The Uzumaki looked at her inquisitively while the Uchiha eyed her carefully.

"It's the sand chick!" Naruto pointed out the obvious.

"Where's the other two?" the latter demanded. His eyes were trained on her in a threatening manner. Luckily for her they were still black.

Temari returned the glare. Regardless if she was weakened or not, she wasn't going to relent to any of his demands. "Why would I tell you?" she responded dryly. She smirked at the obvious frustration the answer caused.

Naruto stepped forward, a noticeable tick on his head. "I don't care about them, I just need to know where my friend is!"

"He's probably dead." Before Temari knew what happened, she was being lifted off of the ground by her shirt. She was released a pained squeal from the sudden movement and was secretly glad the tree was knocked down or she may have been slammed into it. She stared into the cerulean eyes of the boy and instantly wished she didn't. The bright blue orbs seemed to darken as a wave of killing intent blasted her stiff.

"Don't you DARE say that again, do you hear me? Nobody can beat Goku!"

"Goku?" Temari echoed quietly. Her thoughts quickly drifted to the smile of her most recent encounter. Naruto shook her again, getting angrier by the second.

"Hey, are you deaf or something? Where's Goku!?"

"Look out!"

Naruto was tackled quickly to the ground. He grunted in pain as he collided with the surface.

This was fortunate for him for a half of a second later a stream of fire flew over head. Naruto glanced down at his attacker and growled as he noticed the black tacky haircut.

"We're on the same team Teme!" He shoved the Uchiha.

"Yeah, and you wouldn't be any help if you just died, now would you? He scrambled to his feet and faced his attackers.

The two looked alike, the had to be twins. The only difference was one had a scar on his cheek. The other looked angrier, and was a good bit bigger than his partner. Both ninja wore Sand headbands.

"Hey Temari, are they bothering you?" the scarred one asked with a smirk.

Naruto turned toward the man and scowled. Who the hell did he think he was?

"Don't get in my way, Scar!"

The shinobi glared. He looked towards his bulky companion. The shinobi released a growl, one that sounded more animalistic than human.

Before anyone realized it, Naruto was fisted in his jaw. The young genin squealed in pain as he was punched and his body began to tumble through the forest. He crashed back-first into a large maple tree, groaning as he slid down.

Sasuke's eyes widened at the display. He barely saw the bulky twin move! The other shinobi quickly created a clone that scooped Temari up. "You, get her some help." A mere grunt was his response and he soon took off into the forest. The smaller shinobi glared back towards the two genin and smirked. "Garth, destroy them." He glanced towards Sasuke. "Start with Duck Butt there."

Sasuke activated his kekkai genkai in an instant. From the small display of power shown already he was more than sure that he would need them. He barely noticed as Naruto dragged himself back to his side. The blonde was rubbing his swelling cheek with a face mixed with pain and anger. He began to speak in a low growl.

"Teme… we have to work together. He's fast." The sole Uchiha nodded in irritation. He glanced towards his slim partner and noticed the sly smirk on his face.

In a burst of rising gravel the massive shinobi jetted towards the two once more. His target this time was Sasuke. He reached for the boys neck, but he saw it coming and gripped the offending limb. He smirked as he stared into the eyes of the fighter.

One thing that Kakashi taught him during training was the history of the sharingan. The man told him that his dojutsu had many perks. Each sharingan had its own ability that would manifest when it reached its prime. Some were blessed with teleportation and others could melt into a goo. There was even a rumor that one member could predict the future!

One thing that all of them possessed, however, was a strength for genjutsu. A trained sharingan could trap almost any shinobi with one look if they weren't properly trained to defend genjutsu.

He hoped this man wasn't trained.

Sasuke smirked as the man's eyes widened, sure that he was caught in the illusion. To his shock the shinobi reared back his other gargantuan fist and threw it at him.

"Crap!" Sasuke whispered. He released the arm of the mammoth and hand vaulted away as a crater was formed where he formally stood. He watched as Naruto rushed from the side and kicked. The blow created a resonating boom, but to both boys surprise the shinobi didn't flinch or even pay the blow any mind.

The large man turned towards Naruto and attempted to grab him with a roar. The genin screeched and jumped away, nearly stumbling on a loose root. He caught his bearings and leapt onto a tree, turning to face his adversary. He froze as he saw a fist impacting the tree. Instinct caused him to jump away from the crazed attacker.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"

"Garth!"

Naruto jumped once more to avoid the aftermath of the flame jutsu. He landed in a bush that luckily wasn't set aflame. He glanced into the smoke as he pulled himself free. "About time you did something!"

Sasuke quickly was beside him. Naruto could see that his sharingan was still trained on the large area of smoke. "It's not over…" he drawled without glancing at his teammate.

Naruto looked between him and the smoke perplexed. "What? But you hit him head on!"

From the flames the man stepped out and both of the boys breath hitched. Parts of him were still flaming. His body seemed to be falling apart in clumps. Half of the face was sliding down and a low gurgle could be heard. He stepped forward and his leg dissolved into sand, causing him to stumble forward.

The man roared loudly with his disfigured face and both genin tensed. Both hands of the man rose and they were shocked as they shot out towards them. They both dived to avoid them with Sasuke recovering first and went through seals.

"Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!" A number of flames flew towards the beast of a man. He raised a sandy recovered hand and blocked the ensuing flames with a grunt.

The other shinobi took this time to speak as he too went through seals. "Doton! Sandogōremu fukugen no jutsu!"

To the horror of the genin the sand began to rise and surround the man. The soil began to constrict him, and with a roar it shot out. Their mouths hung open in disbelief.

"He… he grew!" Naruto yelled. While the man was taller than them before, he now stood over eight feet, which was easy to see even though he was knelt on one knee. His limbs thickened and his skin turned a deep gray. Two small horns were protruding from his thick skull and his knuckles were replaced with four inch spikes.

Both pre teens began to shake slightly as the beast rose to his feet. His gaze went from each boy, and with each movement they could hear creaking, as if there were gears instead of bones. He cracked his neck to both sides while his beady eyes stayed on the two.

The other shinobi began to laugh. "Why so scared? You looked so confident when you burned him earlier." The larger man took a heavy step forward, and both boys stepped away reflexively, causing another laugh from the other.

"W…. What the heck is he?" Naruto asked with a scared look on his face. "This…. He can't be real!"

Sasuke silently agreed, but chose pointing out the obvious wouldn't help in the slightest. He instead tried to devise a plan. Unfortunately, the only way to make one is to fight that thing head on.

Hn. This was going to be one hell of a day.

"Hey, you." Naruto growled. Sasuke looked towards his partner. The boy was glaring past the giant and trained on his partner.

"Are you talking to me?"

"Is there anybody else who looked like they were slapped by a bear?"

The shinobi glared at the blonde, and the large creature growled that shook the surrounding trees. He grit his teeth, but quickly closed his eyes. A deep chuckle began to emanate from his throat. "You have quite the mouth, aye? Go on, speak." His grey eyes narrowed. "But choose your words wisely, boy, or you just might waste your last breath."

Sasuke looked towards Naruto, panicked. What was he thinking? Was he trying to get himself killed?

Naruto folded his arms across his chest confidently. "I'm guessing your big brother here is the only one that can fight. You just sit your lazy butt back there and watch."

Sasuke glanced towards the shinobi. His eyebrows rose as he noticed the glare being directed at his fellow leaf shinobi. Naruto was getting under his skin.

Perfect.

"You're nothing more than a coward. How the heck did you become a chunin?"

"I'm a Jonin, you bastard!"

Naruto barked with laughter. "Really? A jonin? Hahaha!" he gripped his gut while he laughed, ignoring the low growl coming from the enemies. He wiped a tear from his eyes. "Aww man, the sand must really suck!"

That did it. The shinobi stepped forward, beside his bulky companion. "Garth, I'm tagging in."

Both leaf shinobi shared a glance, and their excitement was evident in it. They prepared for battle as the man summoned a small katana from a scroll. Sasuke couldn't hide his smirk as he lowered into his interceptor stance.

"Garth," the man said calmly as he looked at Naruto, "Handle the Uchiha."

XxxoxxX

A/N: It's probably appropriate to apologize for taking so long, so I'm sorry. I'm still looking for a beta, so yeah… any takers? But yeah, hope you enjoyed. Working on the next chapter as I type this!


	21. Son Goku

Son Goku

Goku continued to run through the forest. His mind was set on finding the bad guys that were destroying Naruto's house.

Although Fanny told him to be cautious he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was excited! The past time he fought someone that he enjoyed was the guy with mouths for hands, but it was cut short by the sneaky blowing up birds.

The martial artist smiled as he thought of the fight. Although he lost, it was enjoyable for the short time it lasted. H only hoped the next battle will give him the same thrill, or even better!

Goku froze as he heard a loud scream. He could see birds flying away from the left and immediately pin pointed that to be where the scream originated. With a burst of speed he began to sprint through the woodlands.

After a few seconds of sprinting the boy began to see signs of battle. It reminded him of where he found Fanny so he knew that he was in the right area. It was then that he could see a mop of red hair.

The ginger was grinning madly at a figure slumped at his feet. Upon closer inspection Goku could see that it was a person. The bottom half of the person was covered in sand that seemed to be moving on its own accord. Goku saw pain in the floored teens face and could hear him grunting in pain.

"Stop it!" On instinct Goku jumped and kicked at the red head. He was surprised when sand rose and met his foot. Goku rounded with his other leg and sand rose once more to meet him, this time wrapping around his leg. He grunted and gripped his handy pole, cutting through he thin layer of sand, and did a backflip away. He landed and stared into the eyes of his opponent.

It was then he noticed how odd the person looked.

The red head had two golden eyes and was abnormally bulky. His hands were forming into claws and sand seemed to be continuously rising and falling from his figure. Blue veins were stretched on his skin.

Goku's concentration was broken as he heard labored breathing. He glanced to the figure on the ground and could tell that he was in immense pain. He instinctively jumped towards him but was batted away with a wave of sand.

The ginger looked from the injured boy and back towards Goku. A sick smile spread across his face. "You want to help him? Why?"

Goku rose to his feet with a scowl. That sand was really starting to get annoying! "He's not doing anything! It's not fair to hurt him!"

The sand nin pointed a bulky hand towards the downed opponent. The sand around the hurt teen began to twist, and a scream ensued louder than the first.

"Stop it!" Goku rushed towards his opponent with his pole poised to strike. With a flick of the wrist he was tossed away once more. He twisted and landed vertically on a tree and used the momentum to spring back, ignoring the scream that was still sounding in his ear. "Power Pole extend!"

The sand beast was unprepared for the extending strike. He was hit on the side of the head and sent barreling away from his captor. Goku valiantly landed where he once stood and kneeled next to the hurt person.

"Are you OK?" he asked with concern.

The teen glanced at Goku with tears in his eyes. His teeth were clamped tight and his breathing erratic. "You… just run!" Goku's eyes narrowed at the statement. "Gaara's going to kill us… leave while you still can!"

Goku glanced back and saw the kid rising. A crazed look was in his eyes and Goku watched as sand began to rise rapidly from the ground.

"His name… is Gaara?" Goku asked without looking towards the injured person. A pained grunt of agreement was his answer so he continued. "Can you stand?"

The boy weakly shook his head. "No. Everything below my waist is broken." He choked tears back as he spoke. "Get away while you can. There's no way you can beat him."

Goku growled at the statement. He rose to his feet and faced his enemy, hands balled into fists beside him. The ginger's eyes narrowed in obvious anger and Goku responded with a smirk. He glanced back towards his new friend and smiled.

"Don't worry mister! I can take him!"

The boy cringed at the comment. He wasn't sure if he should be happy or concerned about the boys bravery.

"Kankuro."

Goku glanced back towards the boy with a raised brow. He began to chuckle heartily. "No silly, my name's Goku, not Kuro!"

The boys face twisted into a mixture of pain and anger. "No you idiot! MY name is Kankuro!"

"Oh! My name is Goku!"

"I know what your na-"

"SHUT UP!"

Both boys turned and saw a large wave of sand rising from the earth. It rose to over ten feet, roaring dangerously. Goku's first instinct was to run away, but he then glanced back at the injured Kankuro. "I'm sorry but this is going to hurt!"

"What are you- GAH!" Kankuro shouted in pain as he was hoisted into Goku's arms, bridal style. The boy jumped away just as the wave crashed down with a force that shook the surrounding trees. He nimbly landed on a tree but quickly jumped back to avoid another wave. This continued for several moments and he was really starting to get annoyed.

Kankuro could tell that he was slowing the boy down. The kid was powerful and nimble, it wouldn't surprise him if he was a chunin. He cringed as his body was jerked again from another evasive maneuver.

"Goku, put me down!" he barked at the younger male. He no longer tried to hide the tears for the pain was much to great.

Goku valiantly shook his head. "I'm not leaving you behind Kuro!" A somersault to avoid a volley of sand followed, leaving the crippled teens leg flailing painfully in the air.

"Please!" Goku looked down at his new friends face. The painted face of Kankuro looked exhausted. Tears left the paint streaking messily down both cheeks. "Put me down! If you're going to fight him, don't worry about me!"

The young hero bit his lip in frustration. Although he didn't want to, he could sense that he had no say in the matter. With a nod he began to speak. "Ok. Let me get you somewhere safe."

With an unnatural burst of speed Goku sprinted away from the hollering beast trailing him. After a full minute he was out of sight of the genin, but his animalistic howls could still be heard. Goku lightly placed the boy under the roots of a large tree, being careful not to injure him anymore.

Kankuro bit back the pain that began to rise from all of the movement. "Thanks kid," he forced out, happy to finally be on stable ground.

Goku gave the kid a cheeky grin. "It was nothing, really! Just stay hidden, k? I'll be back before you know it!" Goku turned to leave.

"Wait!" The boy stopped and glanced over his shoulder. He could hear trees being toppled by his foe coming nearer but chose to ignore them for the meantime.

Kankuro's face met the young boys with seriousness. "Goku… that kid back there is my brother. He's the most frightening person I have ever come across. As time progresses, he will only get stronger. Be careful."

Goku nodded solemnly. He only recently learned what a brother was, so he wasn't exactly sure what that meant. The only part of the sentence that caught his ears was that the boy would be getting stronger.

A smile crept across his face.

A tree a few hundred feet away was toppled. The martial artist sprinted towards the direction of the destruction.

"Stop hiding you COWARD!" Another tree was toppled, this one sounding larger than the last. When Goku approached he could see that his opponent looked even more like an animal. His head was nearly completely covered in sand and two raccoon like ears were present. He was also sporting a long tan tail.

Goku landed in a tree to the right of the attacking monster. His eyes gazed on the messy trail left behind. A nearly straight line was cut through the once beautiful forest. This angered him slightly, all life was precious! Until it was time to eat, of course, but that was the only exception!

"Hey!" The golden eyes turned and trained on his figure. He could feel a strange sensation coming from the glare. It conflicted his emotions; it made him almost want to run and hide. "You're fighting me!"

The creature began to smile. A chuckle came from its throat, sounding like a muffled cackle. "You? Fight me?" A gurgle followed. "I am the most powerful! Only I deserve to exist!"

Goku stood his ground with both fists at his side. "You don't know that! I'm strong too!"

"There's a difference from being strong and being the strongest!"

Goku grinned at the beast. He chuckled light heartedly while rubbing his finger under his nose. "If you are the strongest then I really want to fight you now!"

With this declaration the battle began.

Goku jumped towards Gaara with his trusty pole poised to strike. When he was a few inches away the rod met a tan paw. There was a tense power struggle, both fighting to gain the upper hand.

Goku saw a slight movement out of the corner of his eyes and broke the hold. He jumped away and breathed a sigh of relief when a spike of sand was jutting from his previous position.

He rushed back in with a different approach. "Power Pole extend!" The red stick stretched to a great length and was jutted into the ground. He used the momentum to catapult himself into the air.

Gaara smirked at his airborne enemy, crossing both hands across his chest. "Suna Shuriken!" With his battle cry he swiped both arms forward and a hail of sharpened sand shot into the air.

"Gah!" Goku used his pole to swat the immediate projectiles away. He twisted like a cat to dodge more of the shuriken to the best of his ability. He winced as one cut his cheek, and his clothing quickly followed. As he continued to fall and get diced all he could do was cross his arms to lessen the damage.

"Die! Die! DIIIIIIE!" Gaara sent wave after wave of shuriken to the defenseless boy with glee. Goku grimaced from the relentless assault. He now realized that going airborne only hindered him from doing anything. If only he could fly!

Wait.

"FLYING NIMBUS!"

Gaara's cackling stopped as he saw a flash of gold coming from the sky. In a happy whoop he saw his prey get swooped up by the flash.

Goku cackled with delight as he twirled in the air. Gaara began his assault once more, pumping more chakra to speed up the shuriken hail.

The gold cloud evaded the blasts with ease. It moved in swift circles, changing altitude at a rapid pace. "You can't catch me, hee hee!"

"Grr… Stay STILL!" The shots ceased and a long arm stretched forward, attempting to grab the airborn child.

Goku pointed his pole downwards aiming for the fist. "Extend!" In a flash the red pole stretched and met the appendage head on. The beast roared as they collided and continued to push. Goku's teeth were clenched together as he applied pressure, trying to match his foes. His small arms wobbled from the power being forced back.

The sand monster chuckled. "What?" he asked while grinning at his quivering opponent. "Do you finally realize that your end is near?"

Goku stayed silent. It took him all of his concentration to hold the pole in place. Sweat flowed down his face at a frantic pace as he continued to shove.

The golden eyed creature laughed once more. He lifted his other gargantuan hand and aimed the fingers at his adversary. Goku gulped at the gesture. He didn't know what to expect, but it certainly wasn't going to be something he wanted to experience.

The golden eyes of his enemy gleamed as he began to cackle. Goku glanced down and noticed something strange. He ignored the threatening hands and focused on the weird stomach.

Gaara was leaning forward. He listened intently, grunting as he applied more pressure to his pole. The sound of a loud snore, one that made him giggle.

"He's…" he lost control of the pole. He held back a laugh as he was vaulted into the air. The nimble boy twisted in the air as paw came close, pushing it down with both of his hands.

Unfortunately, it hit his form of transportation.

Goku's eyes widened as he stared into the eyes of his attacker. The small cloud dispersed in a sprinkle of gold mist.

"Nimbuuuuuuuus-AUURGH!"

The beast that was slowly covering Gaara cackled like an animal as he landed the punch in the boys ribcage. "Huh…" The creatures laughter came to a halt. Goku was glad, he hated the high pitched voice.

"That punch wasn't strong at all. HAHAHA!" He grabbed his stomach and pushed as he snickered, covering Gaara in more sand.

To his dismay, the hand that was once pointed at him aimed again. A wicked smirk spread across his face.

Goku realized that he was in a bad spot. He was falling with no way to dodge any attacking coming. He scowled as the tips of each finger started glowing.

"Suna: Peretto!"

The raccoon looking beast smirked as small pellets began to shoot out of each finger. The monkey boy shot down to avoid them, straightening his body to a point. The monster growled and continued to release wave after wave.

Goku was thankful for two things at this moment. He jerked to the left to avoid a volley of blasts. They shot harmlessly past, but he didn't dare to relax.

That brought him to his first gift.

His Grandpa was a fun man. He treated Goku the best a kid could ask for (in Goku's opinion). He would play games with him, Goku's favorite being Dajji Kono.

Dajji Kono was a game his Grandpa created. It consisted of the old man standing in the middle of the forest. Goku was tasked to dodge every assaulting rock sent his way.

The boy smirked as his gaming instincts kicked in. He ducked to avoid a wave of sand, it missing his hair by an inch.

He rolled as the other fist came swinging for another hit. As the limb soared by he wrapped his tail around it, quickly pulling himself upright upon it. His shoe glowed a bright blue as he clung to the appendage, taking off in a deadly sprint.

Goku was quickly realizing that the beast was growing at a rapid rate. The boy was once his size, but now he was nearly twice his height.

The raccoon twisted his blasting arm towards the monkey boy. "Your fast!" he said with a chuckle, angling the shooting hand to continue its assault. He cackled as the boy jumped to avoid the sand.

Goku began to plummet to the ground in rapid succession. When he hit the ground he rolled forward just as a large paw landed where he was. Luckily he was short enough to go under the growling beast.

He snatched up his pole which conveniently was under the creature. He noticed that being behind the target, it gave him ample time to try out his new jutsu, taught by the great Naruto Uzumaki.

"Sennen Goroshi!" The boy shoved his pole into the backside of the beast. He grinned like a maniac, happy that he finally landed a hit.

To his amazement it hurt the monster very little. It turned and glared at the boy, suddenly slapping him with it's massive tail.

Goku was sent sailing through the air at a quick pace. He couldn't help but smirk through the pain as he noticed his pole still stuck in the raccoons butt.

"Extend!"

"Wha-AUUUUUUURG!" The pole extended, lifting the monster off of the ground and through the trees. Goku watched with a tired grin as he continued to rise. After a few hundred feet, he chose to speak again.

"Retract!"Goku leapt to his feet and ran, catching the falling pole in the process. He landed on his feet a few yards away as his opponent crashed into the ground.

A large dust cloud rose, blinding the tailed kid from his enemy. He gripped his pole tightly, preparing for the next move.

A large roar sounded from the area. The boy felt a strong blast of air collide him, but he held his ground. He realized that it wasn't air being thrown at him, but it was the power that was being unleashed by Gaara.

Goku yelled as he was struck by something he couldn't see. He watched a hand fly towards him, missing by a few inches. The hand was larger than him, and strangely wasn't attached to anything.

Goku landed on the ground, which was a big mistake. Sand shot out quicker than he could react. Gripping one of his legs. He struggled to free himself but it only managed to get his other leg stuck as well. He grunted at his predicament while continuing to struggle.

Goku growled as he heard slow footsteps coming towards him. He looked up and saw a sight that shocked him to no end. The creature was huge! Goku was staring up into its head, which was bigger than him by a lot.

The creature snickered. "Boy does it feel good to be out!" A high cackle followed as he gazed at his hands, swishing a tail behind him. He locked gold eyes with Goku's black. "I guess I should thank you, huh? But who really thanks their lunch hahaha!" He gripped his burly stomach as he laughed.

Goku glared at the monster. Sand was slowly working its way up his body, up at his chest now. The situation he was in was brutal.

He then remembered a technique he recently learned. He cupped his hands together and placed them to his side. "Kaaaaaaaaaaaameeeeeeeee."

The sand beast raised an imaginary eyebrow at the technique. He could see a blue light beginning to gather in the hands of the child. "You think you're gonna hirt me?" He lifted a paw and aimed it towards the kid once again. "Not if I bury you first!"

Goku ignored the sand that was quickly covering his body. He continued pumping energy into the blast in his hand. "HaaaaaaaaaaMeeeeeeeeee."

The beast sped up the sand. It quickly rotated around the boy and covered him completely. He smiled as he began to close his hand. "Sabaku Ky-"

"Haaaaaaaaa!"

The monster released a shriek as he watched a blue wave fly out of his technique. The wave hit him in his stomach, sliding him back a few feet. The beast fell to one knee which shook the ground. He rapidly inhaled, trying to catch his breath.

Goku smirked as he to fell to a knee as the sand fell off of him. He was tired and oxygen deprived from being encased in sand.

Gaara rose back to both feet. Goku noticed that the once playful eyes were now glaring dangerously at him. He rose to his feet and stumbled backwards, catching himself before he fell.

"You….. YOU!" A shaky finger was raised at the smirking boy. "You DARE hurt the great Shukaku? I'll kill you!"

Before Goku could react he was struck by a strong back hand. He sailed through the air and crashed back first into a tree. He was then punched by the same fist, sending him flying through four trees.

When he hit a fifth, he slid to the base. The raven haired bot shakily rose to his hands and knees, gripping the dirt in pain. He could taste blood in his mouth and feel his right eye swelling. He looked to his left and saw his pole laying on the ground a few feet away. He reached for it but was sent careening back by a basketball sized blast of air. He shrieked in pain as he landed upon a higher branch and slid. He could feel numerous splinters layered upon his skin.

The boy mechanically rose back to his feet. He was running on will power at this point.

This was by far the hardest fight that he'd ever been in. It was strange, but he enjoyed it immensely. The strength of this guy only made him want to get strong enough to beat him.

The boy was suddenly struck in his chest and rammed into a tree. He realized that he was stuck to the thick tree and being tightly squeezed. He grit his teeth with and grunted as he tried to free himself to no avail.

The large tan creature looked at his prey with a smile. He rubbed his hands together and snickered. "Ohhhh I love the feisty ones! It makes it all worth it when I kill you! "

Goku continued to struggle, much to the amusement of the creature. "Why don't you just give up? It'll make it so much easier."

The struggling continued for the tailed kid. "My grandpa…" He spoke through grit teeth, "told me…. To NEVER give up!"

Shukaku noticed that the hold was weakening. 'Such power…' he thought. His eyes then widened in realization. The tail, the strength… it couldn't be!

"Goku?" the beast muttered. The boy glared towards the monster. For some reason, Shukaku could feel power hidden deep inside him.

"How.. do you know…. My name?"

The beast stared into the eyes of his captured prey. He thought it was his brother, but he would've been able to sense his brother. He could tell that one of them were here, but not that one.

"Imposter!" Goku howled as the hand squeezed him tighter. The beast was beyond anger, and there was nothing he could do to avoid it. After screaming for an umpteenth amount of time he lost consciousness.

Shukaku glared at the sleeping boy. He didn't know who he was, but he seemed like a potentially dangerous foe in the future. There was only one way to prevent this.

He would kill him now, while he was vulnerable.

XxxoxxX

Ok! I got this chapter out sooner than I thought. This is because a reviewer (Gogeta) asked for more saiyan action. I hope you all enjoyed!

Gamelover41592: I'm glad I could keep you surprised!


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